The parchment and leather museum

I tested the visit to the parchment and leather museum

It was around 16 p.m. that I pushed open the door of the parchment and leather museum for a dive into the history of Annonay from yesterday to today! The Dumas parchment factory is still in operation and is one of the last three in France.

I enter through the shop. Inside, leather and parchment items await. The pleasant scent of leather fills the room. Lucile, Frédéric Dumas's daughter, greets me, giving me a sample of parchment as a souvenir. Its texture is soft and delicate; one can easily imagine why this material would have been so prized for calligraphy and illumination.

The first room is a recreation of a 30s bedroom. Horn, wool, leather, parchment… all these materials are used for everyday objects : a suitcase, a bedside lamp, or a bedspread, for example. Nothing is thrown away; everything is upcycled! Among these objects is a mirror covered in parchment. The wet parchment is applied to the mirror. In the museum , I will find many other objects using this technique.

Is the parchment made of paper?

This belief dies hard! Parchment is indeed made from animal skin. While it is used as a writing material, it is much older than paper and competed with papyrus . Parchment making is a profession quite similar to that of a tanner or leather dresser. The difference lies in the fact that the parchment skin is simply not tanned! And if you're wondering where the word "parchment" comes from , you'll discover it during your visit to the museum.

I then settled down to watch a 10-15 minute film recounting the history of the museum's creation . Dating from 2009, it's the result of a long process of gathering material from flea markets, collectors, volunteers from the Friends of Parchment and Leather association , and acquaintances. We learn that the Dumas parchment works supplied the Republican Guard with drumheads—quite an achievement!

I continue to the main hall which hosts temporary exhibitions but also private events (conferences, yoga classes, ballroom dancing, meetings, etc.)

In addition to the history of parchment and leather, I discover objects like suitcases, bags, shoes and also more unusual things like crocodile-leg gloves.

The piece that most caught my eye: a bouquet of flowers… made of parchment ! Incredibly delicate, it contrasts sharply with the parchment strips displayed further on, renowned for their strength. This is precisely the appeal of the diverse objects in this room: showcasing all the qualities of this material: strength, elasticity, delicacy, longevity… Some are even modern objects, proof that parchment is still used and can even be stylish!

Why is there a parchment in Annonay?

Legend has it that the rivers of the Deûme and the Cance are so pure that they attracted the parchment makers in the XNUMXth century and that they founded the city. The tanners and parchment makers made the city famous, until their decline in the XNUMXth century.

family history 

To access the third room, I pass through an imitation wooden fuller, a huge drum used to soften, untangle and knead the skins. Part of this room explains the history of the Dumas family and the creation of parchment. We learn, for example, that André Dumas, father of Frédéric, invented decorative skin in France at the end of the 50s. 

The manufacturing steps, step by step… 

Further on, one can observe through a window, the current manufacturing workshop, which has just been refurbished, and the employees who are at work there. We also discover how parchment is made: trimming, tempering, desemming, liming, bleaching, framing or drying… Steps that can take up to a month and a half to obtain a parchment! We discover a real know-how of which only a few factories remain in France. In 2013, the Tannerie Parcheminerie Dumas received the national label “Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant”.

I reached the end of the tour after an hour and a half. The time flew by! I made a quick stop at the shop and thanked Lucile for her warm welcome. I discovered uses for parchment I never knew existed and gained insight into the mysterious world of the parchment maker's craft.

It's your turn…