Museum of Angoulême

The Angoulême museum, reopened in March 2008, is housed in the former Bishopric. Extended twice, though originally of the twelfth century (in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries), and the elegant facade Friedland Street is in the flamboyant Gothic style. The view of the ugly monkey that crowns the building is a curiosity. It is a sympathetic nod to the bishop who constructed this edifice, playing with his name (Saint-Gelais) which in French is pronounced "singe laid" (ugly monkey). The museum featuring a glass tower offers a unique and close view of the top of the cathedral of St-Pierre. The collections are divided into several major sections: Archaeology, Art Maghreb, Africa and Oceania, and Fine Arts.