Zaal met schilderijen en kabinetten in Musée Lorrain te Nancy before 1896

This print shows us a gallery in the Musée Lorrain in Nancy. Even without knowing the date of the image, we can still consider what a museum does, how it organizes its objects. Looking at the picture, we see an abundance of paintings crammed together and hung high on the wall, alongside furniture and sculpture. In the 19th century, museums began to use such displays to illustrate national identity through artifacts related to local history. This was a time of nationalism and empire-building across Europe. Regional museums like this played a role in creating a sense of national identity by preserving a local history and culture. The Musée Lorrain, founded in 1850, aimed to preserve the history of the Lorraine region of France. Through documents, objects, and artworks such as these, local museums constructed and exhibited the history and identity of their region. Images like this one and documents about the museum's collections and exhibitions help us to understand the cultural life of 19th-century France.