The Bargoin Museum occupies a 19th-century building in the old town and divides between two substantial collections: natural history and textiles. The natural history section covers the geology and biology of the Massif Central with particular depth on the volcanic Auvergne — an appropriate local focus given the landscape. The palaeontology section includes material from sites in the surrounding region.
The textile collection is more unexpected — a significant holding of carpets and textiles from the Middle East, Central Asia, and North Africa, assembled in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The juxtaposition of natural history and ethnographic textiles in the same building is unusual but the individual collections are both worth seeing. Entry is reasonably priced and the museum is rarely crowded.