Aven d'Orgnac - Grand Site de France - The City of Prehistory

On the Grand Site de l'Aven d'Orgnac, just a stone's throw from the Grotto exit, the Cité de la Préhistoire evokes 350,000 years of human adventure through collections of local remains of human occupation. Visit before or after the Aven d'Orgnac! (lire plus)

Just a stone's throw from the Gorges de l'Ardèche, Aven d'Orgnac is a unique site in several respects: classified for its scientific value, it has been awarded the Grand Site de France label for its sustainable management of an exceptional natural site. It offers a wide range of activities in the same area, enabling visitors to understand both the geological evolution of the area and its occupation by man over the course of time, notably at the Cité de la Préhistoire.

The Cité de la Préhistoire - a modern, fun-filled museographic space with Musée de France accreditation - provides an insight into the millennia-old history of the earth and its inhabitants. To visit the Cité de la Préhistoire is to experience a moving face-to-face encounter with our ancestors, and to better understand who these not-so-distant men and women were!

In this museographic space, spanning 350,000 years of human adventures - from the Middle Paleolithic to the First Iron Age - authentic objects from excavations in the Ardèche and northern Gard regions are presented in a redesigned museography featuring multi-player touch tables, engaging sound effects, explanatory videos, life-size illustrations and more. A modern, emotionally-charged visit that offers a fresh look at the remains on display, and depending on the season, the chance to try out prehistoric activities such as fire, flint and darts!

>>>> Discover the Grand Site de France
Continue your visit to the Grand Site de France with the Grotte d'Orgnac, which adjoins the Cité de la Préhistoire.
Its gigantic volumes and the beauty of its subterranean landscapes are astonishing. Giant palms, translucent fistulas, eccentrics, candlesticks, organ cases, columns, ochre-coloured draperies, clay fir trees... coiled and balanced under ceilings up to 55 metres high.

The Grotto and the Cité de Préhistoire: two reasons to marvel at the past!