Temporary exhibitions

Boars and pigs in prehistory and antiquity

Suids, members of the pig family, were among the first animal species to be represented by man, and were among the first animals to be domesticated in the Neolithic period. Far from the modern stereotypes that often relegate them to the rank of unloved animals, these mammals played a significant role in ancient civilizations, notably in Egypt, the Near East, Greece and Rome, but also in Celtic and Roman Gaul. The “Boars and Pigs in Prehistory and Antiquity” exhibition is devoted to the place occupied by swine in everyday activities, as well as in the symbolic, ideological, religious, iconographic and craft worlds of Mediterranean and Celtic societies.

Featuring some one hundred exceptional works from a number of prestigious institutions, this journey will take you from the banks of the Nile, Tigris and Euphrates to the familiar banks of the Meuse. From ancient Egypt to modern 19th-century interpretations of Félicien Rops’ Pornocratès, several millennia of art and history await you at the Musée du Malgré-Tout, from April 27 to November 11, 2025.

The 40th anniversary of the Musée du Malgré-Tout

The exhibition traces the history of the Musée du Malgré-Tout, from its founders’ early archaeological work in the southern Entre-Sambre-et-Meuse region to the most recent developments of this internationally renowned institution. Through five thematic sections, visitors will discover the genesis of a crazy project and the behind-the-scenes work of the museum’s staff. Archival documents, a selection of archaeological artefacts extracted from the museum’s storerooms for the occasion, and off-the-wall scenography tell the story of the museum’s creation and illustrate its main functions: acquisition of heritage works (excavations, donations, bequests, etc.), their conservation and study, and the transmission of knowledge.

The exhibition will delight lovers of prehistoric and ancient history, art and archaeology, as well as the local population and friends of the museum, who will rediscover the history of the Treignes power station from the 1920s until it was bought out… and transformed into a museum. On view until March 30, 2025.