Ornans & Musée Courbet
Ornans
The hometown of the painter Courbet, where old houses built on the water are reflected in the Loue River, known as the 'Venice of Franche-Comté'.
The old houses in Ornans stand right on the Loue River, and their reflections in the water were a favourite subject of the realist painter Gustave Courbet. The Musée Courbet is in the neighbourhood where he was born. Renovated in 2011, it displays his oil paintings, drawings and biographical material, and extends to his studio and the family farm. Closed on Tuesdays, admission costs about €8. The town is good for a riverside walk or a canoe trip, and it is a place to sample Comté cheese. It is about 25 km from Besançon and is often visited together with other sites in the Loue valley.
Opening hours
Museum approx. 10:00–18:00; closed Tuesdays
Nearby sights
- Miroir de Scey
- Gouffre de Poudrey
- Lods
- Musée des Maisons Comtoises
- Chapelle des Buis & Notre-Dame de la Libération
- Citadel of Besançon
- Besançon Cathedral & Astronomical Clock
- Cité des Arts et de la Culture