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Bayeux in Calvados, Normandy, France — Western Europe
 

Un Monastère, Manufacture de Porcelaine
⎯⎯⎯
A Convent Manufacturing Porcelain

Bayeux, la qualité a ses racines

 
 
Un Monastère, Manufacture de Porcelaine / A Convent Manufacturing Porcelain Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by James Hulse, August 1, 2026
1. Un Monastère, Manufacture de Porcelaine / A Convent Manufacturing Porcelain Marker
Inscription.  
L'ensemble de bâtiments situé à l'angle sud-ouest de la place appartient à un ancien couvent de Bénédictines (XVIIᵉ-XVIIIᵉ siècles) transformé en manufacture de porcelaine au début du XIXᵉ siècle.

Fondée en 1646, la communauté des Bénédictines de Bayeux s'installe à l'extérieur de la ville, au pied des remparts. Durant la Révolution, les religieuses sont expulsées de leur monastère et ne reprennent la vie communautaire qu'en 1806. Elles sont alors contraintes de s'installer dans une nouvelle résidence (entrée actuelle du couvent rue Saint-Loup).

Leur ancien monastère devenu trop vétuste pour servir d'habitation est transformé en 1812 en manufacture de porcelaine, entreprise qui maintient son activité jusqu'au milieu du XXᵉ siècle. Tout d'abord très modeste et n'employant qu'une dizaine d'ouvriers, l'industrie se développe rapidement jusqu'à compter vers 1870 cent quarante employés.

En un siècle et demi, trois familles se succèdent à la tête de la manufacture, les Langlois, les Gosse et enfin les Morlent.

Elles s'attacheront à produire une porcelaine raffinée permettant d'inscrire durablement le "Bayeux" dans l'histoire des arts de la table, tout en développant une gamme de produits utilitaires variés dont les plaques de rues encore en place à Bayeux sont un magnifique exemple.

A partir des années 1880, la manufacture, entrée dans l'ère industrielle, s'oriente parallèlement vers la production de pièces destinées à l'équipement des laboratoires de chimie, lui valant alors une renommée internationale.

Depuis sa fermeture le 31 juillet 1951, toute trace d'activité porcelainière a certes disparu, mais le Musée Baron Gérard au travers de ses abondantes collections permet désormais d'en découvrir toute la richesse.

Louis Mouillet "L'atelier d'émaillage de la manufacture de porcelaine de Bayeux"

The collection of buildings located on the corner of the Rue de Verdun and Rue Maurice Schumann belong to a former Benedictine convent (17th - 18th centuries) transformed into a porcelain factory at the beginning of the 19th century.

Founded in 1646, the Bayeux community of Benedictine nuns was installed outside the city, at the foot of the ramparts. At the time of the Revolution, the nuns were thrown out of their convent and in 1806 were forced to live in the Rue Saint-Loup.

In 1812, their former convent was transformed into a porcelain factory. Originally quite modest in size, by 1870 the factory employed one hundred and forty people. The enterprise produced refined porcelain tableware as well as developing a range of utility products. The street signs still in place in Bayeux are a magnificent example of this. Entering the industrial era, from 1880 onwards the company moved towards producing items of chemistry laboratory equipment, gaining an international reputation in this field.

Since 1951, all trace of porcelain manufacturing has disappeared, but the Baron Gérard Museum, with its extensive porcelain collections, now enables us to discover all the wealth of this art.

Louis Mouillet "The glazing workshop in the Bayeux porcelain factory"
 
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ville de Bayeux. (Marker Number 10.)
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & CommerceReligion & Religious Structures. In addition, it is included in the France - Bayeux - Circuit du Vieux Bayeux series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1646.
 
Location. 49° 16.578′ N, 0° 42.454′ W. Marker is in Bayeux, Normandie (Normandy), in Calvados. It is at the intersection of Place Charles de Gaulle and Rue des Terres on Place Charles de Gaulle. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 7 Pl Charles de Gaulle, Bayeux, Normandie 14400, France. Touch for directions.

Regionally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, Europe, the European Union, Atlantic Europe, the Schengen Area, Western Europe, a coastal Mediterranean country, and the Western World. Historically, it finds itself in what was once a French colony and also the Roman Empire.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Du Château à la Place Publique / From a Castle to a Public Square (here, next to this marker); Le Général de Gaulle à Bayeux / General de Gaulle in Bayeux
Un Monastère, Manufacture de Porcelaine / A Convent Manufacturing Porcelain Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by James Hulse, August 1, 2026
2. Un Monastère, Manufacture de Porcelaine / A Convent Manufacturing Porcelain Marker
The marker is the right side marker.
(here, next to this marker); La Dentelle / Lace in Bayeux (here, next to this marker); La Rue Général de Dais / Rue Général de Dais (about 120 meters away, measured in a direct line); Bayeux Franco-Prussian War Memorial (about 150 meters away); La Rue de la Maîtrise / Rue de la Maîtrise (about 150 meters away); La Rue Franche / Rue Franche (approx. 0.2 kilometers away); L'Esplanade Flachat (approx. 0.3 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Bayeux.
 
Un Monastère, Manufacture de Porcelaine / A Convent Manufacturing Porcelain Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by James Hulse, August 1, 2026
3. Un Monastère, Manufacture de Porcelaine / A Convent Manufacturing Porcelain Marker
The marker is located in a group of four markers.
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on August 7, 2026. It was originally submitted on August 7, 2026, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 5 times since then. Photos:   1, 2, 3. submitted on August 7, 2026, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.
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Aug. 9, 2026