The European Heritage Days

The European Heritage Days explore all aspects of Lyon's heritage. They take place every year on the third weekend in September.
The European Heritage Days are an opportunity to take a different look at the city's heritage through original tours and city walks.

For the 43rd edition of European Heritage Days, which will take place on 19 and 20 September, two themes will be in the spotlight: ‘Photographic Heritage’ and ‘Heritage at Risk: Revitalise, Resist, Reimagine’.

Photography at the heart of our heritage and collective memory
Postcards, family photographs, illustrated books, exhibitions, magazines, and even mobile phone and computer screens: the images that surround us, both past and present, all trace their origins back to the invention of photography two hundred years ago. The year 2026–2027 will mark the bicentenary of photography, an initiative by the Ministry of Culture that will spearhead several hundred accredited events embodying the full diversity of France’s photographic heritage.
This practice – which encompasses amateur, professional, artistic and scientific dimensions, and has shaped our cultural identity for two centuries – lies at the heart of the 2026 European Heritage Days. The national event highlights the artistic and technical achievements of photography, as well as the intimate relationship the medium has with heritage and historic monuments.

A heritage to be safeguarded in a changing world
Faced with challenges such as increasing digitisation, accelerating population movements, the climate crisis and conflicts of all kinds, part of our heritage is under threat. The second theme chosen at European level for this 43rd edition highlights how we prioritise, protect and preserve cultural heritage for future generations.
This wide-ranging theme addresses the impact of climate change on heritage sites, archival collections, art collections and intangible cultural heritage practices, highlighting innovative and sustainable measures to protect them, such as new monitoring and restoration techniques. Certain international organisations, such as UNESCO, have also put specific safeguarding plans in place. The theme also explores the issue of the durability of the materials from which ‘new heritage’ is made, particularly that of the 20th century.