Archives in motion

Highlight the Departmental Archives, this is the motto of these 2 days of activities, offering the public an interactive and friendly experience punctuated by workshops, conferences, exhibitions, activities and fun activities.

Workshops and activities

• Binding workshop

By registration car limited places - Saturday November 14 and Sunday November 15 at 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Duration: 1 hour.
An animation discovered through a manufacturing workshop. A selection of remarkable volumes will be presented and explained to better understand the work of the bookbinder. The production of a simple notebook will allow the public to understand the different stages of production and the structure of the book.

• Game "The Spirit of Archives"

By registration car limited places - Saturday November 14 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. then from 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Duration: 30 minutes per session.
Modeled on the board game "Mysterium", come discover the material history of an archival document in bad shape and investigate its misfortunes in a collaborative manner.

• Packaging and handling workshop

By registration car limited places - Sunday November 15 at 10:00 a.m.; 10:30 a.m.; 1:30 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. Duration: 30 minutes per session.
This is the béaba of the work of archivists with a touch of preventive conservation: the handling of documents, the choice and assembly of boxes, tailor-made packaging (packaging), storage locations and climate management. With a complete demonstration and a practical workshop.

• Sigillography workshop

Free access Saturday November 14 and Sunday November 15 from 1:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m
Come and observe the know-how of the sigillographer, specialist in the study and conservation of seals.

• Discovery and practice workshop on genealogy, in partnership with the Group of Genealogical Circles of Moselle

Free access Saturday November 14 at 1:30 p.m. and Sunday November 15 at 3:30 p.m. Duration: 1 hour.
The content is adapted according to the level and expectations of the audience. It is thus possible to favor:
- an approach aimed at beginners, presenting the first steps to starting a family search
- identification of different sources useful for genealogical research
- reading and interpreting ancient acts
- the method for progressing from generation to generation
- or, for a more experienced audience, a deepening of the research process.

• Minecraft workshop, in partnership with the Lana France association

Free access Saturday November 14 and Sunday November 15 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m
Explore and rebuild emblematic places in Moselle using the video game Minecraft: the challenge lies in reproducing famous monuments of Moselle heritage using funds provided by the Archives.

• LEGO workshop, in partnership with the Colibric association

By registration car limited places - Saturday November 14 and Sunday November 15. Duration: 1 hour or 2 hours depending on the monument chosen
A LEGO construction workshop around the Sainte-Thérèse church in Metz and the Malbrouck castle in Manderen-Ritzing. Using a model specially designed for the event, participants create their own mini-model of the monument following assembly instructions, then leave with their construction.
10:00 a.m.: Sainte-Thérèse Church - duration 2 hours
11:00 a.m.: Château de Malbrouck - duration 1 hour
2:30 p.m.: Sainte-Thérèse Church - duration 2 hours
3:00 p.m.: Château de Malbrouck - duration 1 hour

• Paper creation workshop, in partnership with the Torcol association

Free access Saturday November 14 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
A workshop dedicated to the artisanal production of paper, from pulp to sheet formation.

• Visit to the Archives, by agents of the Saint-Julien-lès-Metz site

Free access Saturday November 14 and Sunday November 15 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. then from 1:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m
Discover the wealth of funds saved in the Departmental Archives thanks to the expertise of the site agents who will offer you a guided tour of the building.

• Virtual reality headset animation, in partnership with Helios Gaming

Free access Saturday November 14 and Sunday November 15 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m
A visit to the Archives from a new angle thanks to an immersive 360° virtual reality experience. Equipped with a VR headset, the visitor lets himself be carried away by the movement of a drone and discovers the spaces from angles usually inaccessible to the public.

• Historical photobooth

Free access Saturday November 14 and Sunday November 15 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m
Pose in a setting made up of old postcards from Moselle and leave with your souvenir photo.

• Escape Game, in partnership with Echappées temporelles

By registration car limited places – Saturday November 14 at 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Duration: 1 hour.
Come investigate through the mazes of the Archives, solve puzzles and find clues hidden in the documents.

• Dramatized reading, in partnership with Les Trois Points

Free access Sunday November 15 at 4:30 p.m. Duration: 1 hour
Discover real stories preserved in archival documents, told and voiced by actors.

• Exhibition "The Moselle and its heritage"

Free access Saturday November 14 and Sunday November 15 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m
What is the heritage of a department? Old public and private monuments or the properties of the Department of Moselle? The Moselle Departmental Archives invite the public to discover a presentation of some examples of the eclectic Moselle heritage, examples chosen from ruined buildings (castles), in danger (a large Metz church) or redeveloped for a new use (military buildings). It is also an opportunity to discover how the Department, leader in social action and college maintenance, takes charge of the management of another heritage, that inherited from decentralization laws: a rebuilt castle, a college under reconstruction, the Departmental Children's Center transformed and a revisited EHPAD.

Conferences around Moselle history

• " The castle, a reflection of Lorraine history in the Middle Ages and the beginnings of the modern era ", by Gérard Giuliato - Professor emeritus of history and medieval archeology at the University of Lorraine

Free access Saturday November 14 at 2:30 p.m. Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes
"Château", this generic term encompasses a great diversity of privileged habitats built until the beginning of the 20th century. This conference will be limited to the medieval period, between the 10th and 16th centuries. During these seven centuries, the "castle" has continued to transform and adapt like any living organism. It therefore offers a good example of the evolution of political institutions and practices, military realities and construction techniques. The study of these monuments - castellology - born in the 19th century has experienced remarkable growth since the 1960s thanks to archaeology. The Lorraine area retains a number of fortified sites despite the terrible destruction of the 17th century. They nevertheless make it possible to distinguish three major periods in their evolution.

• " Protestantism in Metz and Pays Messin in the modern era ", by Julien Léonard – Lecturer in modern history at the University of Lorraine

Free access Saturday November 14 at 5:00 p.m. Duration: 1 hour
This conference studies the original history of the Protestants of Metz and the Metz region under royal protection, from 1552 to 1685. It shows that the progressive "Frenchization" of Metz does not make the political and confessional particularities of the city disappear. During the Wars of Religion, Metz Protestants experienced periods of prohibition and clandestinity, but also phases of tolerance and reconstruction of their temples. Until the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, the Reformed Church of Metz remained a Church both French in its practices and singular in its status, before seeing its particularism gradually called into question.

• " Maurice Bompard: a Messin at the heart of Franco-Russian diplomacy ", by Corentin Morisot – paleographic archivist and associate professor of history

Free access Sunday November 15 at 2:30 p.m. Duration 1 hour
This conference focuses on the conditions of representation, life and exercise of diplomats in office, considers the embassy of Maurice Bompard in all its aspects: professional and personal, political and social, but also material and symbolic. It also highlights the commitment of a Messin to the service of French diplomacy before the First World War and the return of the "lost provinces".