Pointe-à-Callière Museum (, ) is a museum of archaeology and history in Old Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was founded in 1992 as part of celebrations to mark Montreal's 350th birthday. The museum has collections of artifacts from the First Nations of the Montreal region that illustrate how various cultures coexisted and interacted, and how the French and British empires influenced the history of this territory over the years. The site of Pointe-à-Callière has been included in Montreal’s Birthplace National Historic Site since its designation in 1924.

It receives more than 350,000 visitors a year. Nearly 4.5 million people have come to the museum since it opened in 1992. It has received more than fifty national and international awards, including those in museography, architecture, and for cultural, educational and community activities."Awards and Distinctions", Pointe-à-Callière Museum The museum is affiliated with: the Canadian Museums Association, the Canadian Heritage Information Network, and the Virtual Museum of Canada.

The museum complex comprises three archaeological sites: Pointe-à-Callière, Place Royale and 214 Place d'Youville; the archaeological field school at Fort Ville-Marie; Montreal's first Catholic cemetery; the William collector sewer; an archaeological crypt: Place Royale; a heritage building: the former Youville Pumping Station; 165-169 Place d’Youville, the Mariners House; and archaeological collections of over a million objects. The site of Pointe-à-Callière Museum main building site was once occupied by the Royal Insurance Building, which was also Montreal’s second Customs House from 1871 to 1917.

History The Pointe-à-Callière, Montréal Archaeology and History Complex opened in 1992."Pointe-à-Callière, Montréal Archaeology and History Complex", Board of Montréal Museum Directors The original plan had been to open up the William collector sewer and the remains of St. Anne's Market and the Parliament of the United Province of Canada. Recent archaeological digs brought to light the remains of Fort Ville-Marie and of Governor Louis-Hector de Callière’s home, which are planned for display in a future expansion to expose the Little Saint-Pierre River canalized by the William sewer, and the archaeological remains of St. Anne's Market, home to the Parliament of the United Province of Canada between 1844 and 1849. Visitors will be led to a new exhibition hall, with its entrance on McGill Street, for future international exhibitions on ancient civilizations and their cultures.

In 1996 the museum held its first travelling exhibition, Water In, Waste Out, presented at the Musée de la civilisation (Quebec City) and the Musée et sites archéologiques Saint-Romain-en-Gal (Vienne, France). In 1997, at the Art and Archaeology exhibition twenty Montreal high school students were able to exhibit their works at the Musée et sites archéologiques Saint-Romain-en-Gal. 1690: The Siege of Québec... The Story of a Sunken Ship has travelled to different locations in Quebec and internationally since 2000. France / New France. Birth of a French People in North America, which has already been presented in the Maritimes, toured internationally. The museum also has an exhibition on underground Montreal as part of a cultural route in the underground pedestrian corridors of the Quartier international de Montréal.

Museum complex

The Pointe-à-Callière stands above several historic and archaeological sites of national significance, showcasing major periods in the history of Montreal. Some of the archaeological remains exposed during construction of the building has been left in situ as part of the museum's permanent display on the history of the city. The museum was constructed on pilings to preserve existing finds undisturbed and protected.

The main entrance of the museum, the L'Éperon building, rises above the point of land where Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, Jeanne Mance and other French settlers landed in 1642."Pointe-à-Callière and Place Royale", Vieux Montreal, City of Montréal

Complex components A: L'Éperon building B: First Collector sewer C: Fort Ville-Marie D: Market Place E: Old Custom House - built in 1836 F: Mariners' House

Exhibits

The museum displays archaeological remains from every period in the city's past, and the sites it protects have produced one of the largest archaeological collections in Canada. The museum's staff specialize in research, conservation, outreach activities and managing archaeology and history. In partnership with universities, it conducts research on the city's archaeology and history, and its ethnohistorical collections include artifacts and documents donated locally. The museum also displays exhibits on the city's built and industrial heritage.

Permanent exhibitions include 1701 - The Great Peace of Montréal, Archaeo-Adventure, Building Montréal, Crossroads Montréal, Memory Collector, Pirates or privateers?, Where Montréal Began, and Yours Truly, Montréal multimedia show.

Along with its permanent exhibitions, since it opened the museum has presented more than 70 temporary exhibitions on themes relating to local and international archaeology, history and heritage, culture and artistic creativity, and multiculturalism. Education and outreach programs and cultural activities are available for school groups and the general public on other aspects of archaeology and history. The museum also hosts musical performances, theatre and demonstrations, including lectures, debates and participation in Montreal, Quebec, cross-Canada and international events. The museum works with Native and cultural communities. For ceremonies commemorating the 300th anniversary of the 1701 Great Peace of Montreal in 2001, the museum’s main partners were aboriginal groups from Quebec, the rest of Canada and the United States.

Temporary exhibitions

2025-2026 Sherlock Holmes: Cracking the Case 2025 Knights 2024-2025 Witches – Out of the Shadows The Heart and Soul of Saint-Henri 2024 Olmecs and the Civilizations of the Gulf of Mexico 2023-2024 The St. Lawrence River, Echoes from the Shores 2023 Egypt. Three Millennia on the Nile 2022-2024 Favourites! Our Collections on Display 2022-2023 Headdresses from around the World, The Antoine de Galbert Collection 2022 Vikings – Dragons of the Northern Seas 2021-2022 It's Circus Time! Italian Montréal 2020-2021 The Hudson’s Bay Company – 350 Years of History 2019-2021 Into the Wonder Room 2019-2020 The Incas, Treasures of Peru 2019 Dinner is Served! The Story of French Cuisine 2018-2019 La Petite Vie 2018 Ste-Ann's Market—Parliament of United Canada 1832 – 1849 Queens of Egypt 2017-2019 Hello, Montréal! Bell’s Historical Collections 2017-2018 Passion: Hockey 2017 Amazonia. The Shaman and the Mind of the Forest 2016-2017 From the Lands of Asia Fragments of Humanity. Archaeology in Québec 2016 Of Horses and Men — The Émile Hermès Collection, Paris 2015-2016 Investigating Agatha Christie Snow 2015 The Aztecs, People of the Sun 2014-2015 The Greeks: Agamemnon to Alexander the GreatPohl, John. "Visual Arts: Ancient Greek treasures at Pointe-à-Callière museum", Montreal Gazette, December 9, 2014 2014 Marco Polo: An Epic JourneyLowrie, Morgan. "Marco Polo exhibit at Pointe-à-Callière",Montreal Families 2013-2014 Lives and Times of the Plateau The Beatles in Montréal"Beatles in Montréal 1964 – Exhibition at Pointe-à-Callière Museum", Suites Culturelles, August 5, 2013 2013 The Tea Road 2012-2013 Samurai: The Prestigious Collection of Richard Béliveau 2012 The Etruscans: An Ancient Italian Civilization 2011-2012 Colors of India 2011 To Your Health, Cesar! Wine with the Gauls 2010-2011 St.Catherine Street makes the Headlines 2010 Easter Island: An Epic Voyage 100 years underground Discovering legends with Jean-Claude Dupont 2009-2010 Pirates, Privateers and Freebooters;2008-2009 Costa-Rica: Land of wonders! 2008 France, New France: birth of a French people in North America 2007-2008 1837•1837, Rebellions, Patriotes vs Loyalists 2007 First Nations, French Royal Collections 2006-2007 St. Lawrence Iroquoians, Corn People 2006 Japan 2005-2006 Jules Verne, Writing the Sea 2005 Encounters in Roman Gaul 2004-2005 Old Montréal in a New Light 2004 Oceania 2003-2004 Dreams and Realities Along the Lachine Canal 2003 Archaeology and the Bible – From King David to the Dead Sea Scrolls 2002-2003 Varna – World's First Gold, Ancient Secrets A Collection from the Varna Museum, Bulgaria 2002 Saint-Laurent, Montréal's "Main” 2001–2002 Mysteries of the Moche of Peru 2001 1701 – The Great Peace of Montréal 2000–2001 Africa Musica! Exploring a Collection from the Museo Pigorini 2000 1690: The Siege of Québec... The Story of a Sunken Ship 1999–2000 Treasures from the South of Italy — Basilicata, Land of Light 1999 Montréal, by Bridge and Crossing 1998–1999 Art and Archaeology: Young Artists from Lyon at the Museum Treasures from the Ukrainian Steppes 1998 The Ravages of Time: Restoring Heritage Objects from France Crucifixion: Unique Archaeological Evidence from Jerusalem 1997–1998 Bannock, Baguette, Bagel – Montréal Bread 1997 Abitibiwinni, 6,000 Years of History Art and Archaeology 1996–1997 Ancient Cyprus: 8,000 Years of Civilization 1996 Dream Merchants. The Emergence of Cinema in Quebec Water In, Waste Out. The History of Aqueducts, Water Mains and Sewers in Montréal 1995–1996 Window Stories 1995 The Port as Seen by Pierre Bourgault, Gilles Vigneault and Helmut Lipsky 1994–1995 Bones and Bottles — Fragments of History

See also Archaeology in Quebec

References

External links

Pointe-à-Callière Museum within Google Arts & Culture