The museum houses the Arles-Rhône 3, a Gallo-Roman commercial barge recovered from the Rhône river in 2011.
The architectural design is based on a triangle to reflect the site's location between the river and the ancient Roman circus.
It contains a collection of nearly 1,000 architectural fragments from the Roman theater of Arles.
The museum holds a bust discovered in the Rhône in 2007 that is widely believed to be the only surviving portrait of Julius Caesar made during his lifetime.
The building features specialized conservation labs visible to the public where artifacts are treated for waterlogged wood degradation.
The Musée départemental Arles antique is a premier repository for artifacts from Roman Arelate, housing one of the world's most significant collections of provincial Roman archaeology. The building itself is an award-winning modernist structure designed by Henri Ciriani, specifically constructed to house the Arles-Rhône 3, a near-complete, 31-meter-long Roman flat-bottomed barge discovered in the river in 2004. The collection spans from the Neolithic period to the late Roman Empire, featuring mosaics, sarcophagi, and everyday domestic items. It is situated on a peninsula formed by the Rhône river and the canal d'Arles à Bouc. A significant portion of the exhibition focuses on the economic and maritime history of the city during the 1st through 4th centuries. The museum holds an exceptional series of Early Christian sarcophagi, representing one of the largest such collections outside of Rome. Interactive displays explain the complex excavation and restoration processes of the river-recovered artifacts. The facility is fully climate-controlled to preserve delicate organic materials found in the riverbed.
The elevated viewing platform overlooking the reconstructed Arles-Rhône 3 barge.
Start your tour at the Roman barge exhibit, as it is the museum's center-piece and requires the most time.
Look for the orientation maps at the start of the permanent collection to better understand the topography of Roman Arles.
Visit the outdoor garden space to view the architectural remnants of the Roman circus integrated into the landscape.
Avoid skipping the orientation video, as it provides crucial context for understanding the geography of the river finds.
Closed on Tuesdays throughout the year.
No flash photography permitted; do not touch any artifacts or open-display sarcophagi.
