Musee du Compagnonnage

Forget ships in a bottle. This museum includes interlocking wooden wheels showcased in bottle displays. It’s also home to a violin composed of sugar, a pair of wooden shoes about four feet long, and a booby-trapped lock designed to snare the hand of anyone who tries to pick it. The common denominator for all these items? Each of these objects is a chef d’œuvre, or masterpiece produced by a craftsman applying to become a compagnon.

Compagnonnage refers to a system of social organizations for skilled tradesmen that started in the late Middle Ages and continued into the 1700s. They were similar to guilds, as there was a different one for each trade, but the focus was more social than economic. 

One of the requirements for membership was that each aspirant had to produce a chef d’œuvre to demonstrate their skill. The more elaborate and intentionally-difficult the chef d’œuvre, the better. Hence the wheels in a bottle, the massive loaves of bread covered with artificial flowers, the miniature four-way staircases, and the other incredible treasures inside the Musée du Compagnonnage. There’s a wide variety of trades represented, everything from ropemakers, to shoemakers and bakers.

A few sections towards the end of the exhibit describe the rituals and other requirements of compagnonnage. Besides producing a chef d’œuvre, aspirants had to demonstrate good moral character and make a trip throughout France known as the Tour de France to acquire knowledge. 

One section of the museum discusses the adoption of Masonic symbols by Enlightenment-era chapters of compagnons. Although this historical background is certainly interesting, the museum’s show-stoppers are undoubtedly the chefs d’œuvre themselves.