Noblesse Oblige! Life at a Château in the 18th Century

The permanent exhibition “Noblesse Oblige! Life at a Château in the Eighteenth Century” is an immersive museum experience enabling visitors to share in the day-to-day life of a noble family in the Vaud region during the Enlightenment.

The former reception rooms of Château de Prangins, comprising the salon, dining rooms and libraries, have been returned to their former splendour and now form the backdrop for the exhibition. Boiseries in their original colours, textiles with lustrous motifs and false-marble decorations provide the perfect surroundings for some 600 objects from the era.

“Noblesse Oblige! Life at a Château in the Eighteenth Century” recreates the day-to-day routine of a noble family in the Vaud region at the end of the Ancien Régime, and the life of a baron. Nine rooms examine issues linked to their function: hospitality, wealth and lighting in the salon, servants in the butler’s pantry, and the taste for reading in the library.

Two audioguides by the writer Eugène – one for adults, the other for younger visitors – as well as specially produced films feature the voices of the building’s former inhabitants.