About Mayenne Miniatures
Mayenne Miniatures is a small private museum of fine scale miniatures, housing the collection of dollshouses, roomboxes and miniature teddy bears belonging to Anita Mills. IT opened in August 2008.
This collection has been built up over more than 45 years of international travel and features the work of many international artisans, primarily in 1/12 scale but also 1/24, 1/16 and 1/144 scale.
PLEASE NOTE: This is not a museum of antique toys, a doll museum or a museum of minature paintings!!
There is a small entry fee for the museum.
For 2009 this is 3€ per adult and 1€ for children aged 2-12.
IMPORTANT! The museum is not always open. YOU MUST CALL OR EMAIL FIRST FOR AN APPOINTMENT TO VISIT. Handicap accessible.
Mayenne Miniatures is located at Le Domaine des Hallais, in the Erve Valley in the south east of the department of the Mayenne in northwest France. The complex, formerly a farm, was purchased by the current owners in April 2005 with a view to renovating it as an activity centre for groups of people who want to get away together. The renovation was completed in May 2008, and Le Domaine des Hallais is now welcoming groups for family parties, specialist holidays, courses and seminars.
Le Domaine des Hallais comprises three main buildings and two outbuildings. The first outbuilding was converted into a storage area for fuel for the wood-fired heating, and the second was divided into a boiler room and the miniatures museum, which has ample parking just in front of it. One of the main buildings is the owners' accommodation. The second, the Lodge, houses the kitchen, dining room, reception and lounge on the ground floor, and three bedrooms above. The third, the Grange, is a former barn, and houses the swimming pool, two activity rooms and four further bedrooms.
The location is easily accesible by coach for club or school party visits, as well as by private car. We sometimes organise residential miniatures workshops with international instructors and can also organise private events for specific groups.
Mayenne Miniatures is located just a few hundred yards from the famous 'Sites et Grottes' a riverside park with two interesting caves to visit, a picnic area, and a restaurant. Just a kilometre up the road is St Pierre sur Erve, one of only 8 villages in the Mayenne designated a 'Petit Cité de Caractère' (a village of special historical interest and beauty), thanks to its 11th century stone footbridge over the river and historic church, as well as its former strategic location on the main Roman road between Paris and Brittany! Another of these quaint villages, Saulges, is just across the river. It has a lovely little 9th century church to visit and a gourmet restaurant.
The area is 2-3 hours to the southeast of Paris, about 3 hours due south of the ferry port of Ouistreaham (Caen) and 2.5 hours from the port of St Malo, making it easily accessible for a day trip during a vacation in Normandy, Brittany or the Loire Valley. The nearest train stations are in Laval (35km) or Le Mans (50km), where you can hire a car or, for small groups, we can arrange collection for a nominal fee.