Many general transport museums - and some non-transport museums too - include competition vehicles within their displays. Quite often these are exhibited out of context and with the passing of time their continued display may be brought into question. One such car is an ex-Alain Prost Renault RE40 Formula one car displayed in the Musee des Arts et Metiers in Paris that I visted last Wednesday.
The car is displayed as part of a fairly recent construction in the museum's original building - a church - that was renovated in 2000. The museum is roughly the equivalent (although much smaller) of London's Science Museum and contains many extremely important exhibits including Nicholas Joseph Cugnot's orginal Fardier of 1769/71, the Clement Ader Ariel monoplane and Foucault's Pendulum.
There is also the Amedee Bolle L'Obeisante steam carriage of 1873 and several early cars. The Renualt is displayed at the first level of the raised structure and, when compared to the "sculpture" that Birmingham's think tank museum has thrown together, this one is accessible and affords delightful views of the rest of the church's interior and other exhibits.
There was no caption, however, and no-one seemed to know what its actual identity was or its chassis number but may have been gifted (loaned?) by Renault.
Great to see it...but some detail would have been welcome.
One of the other delightful exhibits on the structure was this Leyat aerocar. Now, imagine taking that for an MOT!
Museum website
Edited by Pullman99, 06 February 2011 - 13:34.
