Upcoming
Brest / Paris / Port-Louis / Rochefort / Toulon
The Call of the Deep
With the "Call of the Deep" cycle, the Musée national de la Marine presents, for the first time, a series of exhibitions deployed across its entire network. From May 2026 to June 2027, this unprecedented programme invites visitors to explore the history, imaginaries and contemporary challenges of underwater exploration—from the earliest mapping attempts to the most advanced technologies.
Five exhibitions, five complementary perspectives
Enlarge image : Portrait of a diver in a diving suit underwater, photographed by Louis Boutan in 1898 in Banyuls-sur-Mer, historic image of early underwater exploration.
From underwater cartography in Brest to the invention of the first submersibles in Rochefort, via technical innovations in Port-Louis and deep-sea exploration in Toulon, visitors will discover different facets of underwater exploration.
In Paris, a major exhibition will trace the history of deep-sea exploration across eras and oceans, bridging literary and artistic imagination, scientific discoveries and technological advances.
This major cultural highlight of autumn 2026 will be enriched by an extensive programme (talks, encounters, screenings, special evening events, etc.), also presented across the museum’s regional sites.
As part of this thematic cycle, the museum will undertake the restoration of a major piece from its collections—a flagship of French maritime heritage: the FNRS III bathyscaphe, a deep-sea exploration vessel located in the gardens of the Tour Royale in Toulon.
Port-Louis – Machines of the Seas: The (Extraordinary) Inventions of Henri Dupuy de Lôme
22 May – 15 November 2026
The Call of the Deep season will open at the Citadel of Port-Louis with an exhibition dedicated to Henri Dupuy de Lôme (1816–1885), designer of the Gymnote, the first operational French submarine, and inventor of the armoured hull process.
Echoing the 400th anniversary of the French Navy, the exhibition will immerse visitors in the major innovations that transformed the French Navy in the second half of the 19th century and helped assert France’s naval power.
Brest – Beneath the Sea: The Adventure of Underwater Mapping
26 June 2026 – 7 March 2027
Presented at the museum in Brest, the second exhibition in the Call of the Deep cycle will explore the history of underwater cartography and how its challenges have evolved over time.
Rochefort – Dive Stations! The Adventure of the First Submersibles
September 2026 – August 2027
In Rochefort, Call of the Deep will focus on the origins of the first military submersible vessels, whose history is closely linked to the Charente naval arsenal.
Paris – Call of the Deep: The Undersea Adventure from Antiquity to the Present Day
14 October 2026 – 14 February 2027
As the highlight of the network-wide programme, the museum in Paris will present a major exhibition in autumn 2026 dedicated to the great adventure of deep-sea exploration.
Through art, literature, science and technology—as well as popular culture—the exhibition will explore the motivations and initiatives that have pushed humanity to extend its reach beneath the surface of our planet.
Toulon – Diving into the Unknown: Underwater Exploration in the Mediterranean
18 November 2026 – 27 June 2027
The final chapter of the Call of the Deep season, the exhibition in Toulon will highlight one of the cradles of deep-sea exploration: the Mediterranean coastline.
Cultural programme 2026
In 2026, the programme of the Musée national de la Marine will be structured around two major themes:
the 400th anniversary of the French Navy and the museum’s first network-wide exhibition, Call of the Deep, presented across all its sites: Brest, Paris, Port-Louis, Rochefort and Toulon.
More info - The Navy and Painters. Four Centuries of Art and Power