Heritage Days 2024 in Paris: discover the Maison d'Ourscamp in the heart of the marshes

For the 41st edition of the Journées du patrimoine in Paris, we're discovering some of the capital's still-secret places. For example, have you heard of the Maison d'Ourscamp, also known as the Maison de l'ours? No ? Well, chances are you've already walked past it, as it's located in the heart of the Marais, on rue François Miron. So head to the 4th arrondissement to discover the Maison de l'Ours, with its Renaissance façade and basement dating back to the 13th century.

For Heritage Days 2024, the Maison d'Ourscamp is offering free guided tours on Saturday September 21 and Sunday September 22.

Here's what's in store for you during the 2024 Summer Games:

• Guided tour of the Maison d'Ourscamp
  September 21 and 22
  

  This house was originally a Parisian possession of the Cistercian abbey of Ourscamp in the Oise region. The only remaining evidence of this period is a mid-13th-century cellar in the basement, comprising three rib-vaulted naves supported by six pillars with geometric capitals. One of the side walls houses a staircase set into the thickness of the masonry. It was only later, in 1585, that the two houses with their symmetrical ashlar facades were built. They feature Renaissance-style dormers with pilasters and triglyphs. These residences, specimens of Parisian rental architecture under Henri III, are distributed around a courtyard with exposed half-timbering, from which start timber-framed staircases with rampant and turned balusters. Home to the Association pour la sauvegarde et de la mise en valeur du Paris historique, this house was saved from demolition by the association's volunteers, who are continuing its restoration.

  
  
  

• To be read
• Heritage Days 2024 in Paris and the Île-de-France region: the full programme for this year's event
• Tips for the week of November 18 to 24, 2024 in Paris: free or inexpensive outings
• What to do in Paris and the Paris Region in November 2024? Our tips and ideas for outings

Originally, in the 13th century, this house belonged to the Cistercian abbey ofOurscamp, in the Oise region. The original basement cellar can still be seen, arranged around three rib-vaulted naves, falling on six pillars adorned with geometric capitals. One of the side walls even houses a staircase set into the thickness of the masonry. The symmetrical ashlar facades of the two houses date from the late 16th century. They feature Renaissance-style dormers with pilasters and triglyphs.

Destined for demolition at the beginning of the 20th century due to insalubrity, the Maison de l'Ours was saved in extremis by the Paris historique association, which has now set up quarters there. A great family visit for the 2024 Heritage Days.