Fantastic! That's exactly I thought upon entering the Musée Le Secq des Tournelles (Wrought Ironwork Museum) in Rouen, France. Items are showcased within the grey stone walls of a former 15th-century Gothic church (Eglise St-Laurent). If you like ironwork, metal, or just flat out beautiful things, this is definately a place to visit. Most of my pictures didn't turn out so well...guess we'll have to go back!
Click to go to the museum website for pictures of some of their collection.
It has the best medieval lock and key collection we've seen in Europe so far! There are some 14,000 pieces in the collection. There are also many beautifully executed examples of things you usually associate with metal work: signs, doors, door knockers, hinges, tools, security grills for windows, cooking utensils, etc.
There are also a number of items that surprised me--iron corsets, 17th century coffee grinders and lighters, lamps with clever ratcheting systems so they could be raised or lowered, delicate jewelry and hair ornaments...again, all handmade in iron.
Click on a picture below to see a larger version. All photos made in April 2010 by LGunter.
 Photo: Shop signs dating from the Middle Ages |  Photo: Museum interior, from the 2nd floor |
 Photo: Tools |  Photo: Beautiful drifted* security grille for a window. *In drifting, a hole is punched into the hot metal; for this grille, additional fleur-de-lis topped iron rods were threaded through the holes. |
needlepoint balustrade that graced Mme de Pompadour's country mansion
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