On September 19 and 20, 2026, visitors will have an exceptional opportunity to enter the historic Sainte-Ursule Chapel and see its newly restored artworks.

From Place de la Sorbonne, the chapel’s distinctive dome is one of the most recognisable features of Paris’s Latin Quarter. Yet while thousands of people pass beneath it every day, few have had the opportunity to step inside. Closed to regular public access for more than 25 years, the Chapelle Sainte-Ursule de la Sorbonne will open exceptionally on September 19 and 20, 2026, as part of the European Heritage Days.

The opening offers more than a rare glimpse behind the building’s monumental doors. It is also the first opportunity for the wider public to see the results of the latest phase of restoration, including 17th-century paintings, sculptural monuments and one of the most important historic interiors connected with the Sorbonne.

A chapel shaped by Cardinal Richelieu

The chapel was commissioned during the 17th-century reconstruction of the Sorbonne led by Cardinal Richelieu, who became head of the institution in 1622. Designed by French architect Jacques Lemercier, the building was intended both as a place of worship and as Richelieu’s mausoleum. The cardinal personally laid its first stone on May 1, 1635.

At the centre of the interior stands Richelieu’s monumental white marble tomb, created by sculptor François Girardon and considered a masterpiece of French classical funerary sculpture. The monument was restored in 2024, together with the tomb of the Duke of Richelieu.

The chapel’s history, however, has been far from uninterrupted. It was vandalised during the French Revolution, later used as an artists’ workshop and subsequently returned to academic and ceremonial life. After suffering damage during the severe storm of 1999, it was closed for safety reasons and has remained inaccessible outside occasional special openings.

Restored paintings beneath the dome

The latest restoration has brought renewed attention to the chapel’s painted decoration. Four medallions by Philippe de Champaigne, positioned high beneath the dome, depict the Latin Church Fathers Saint Ambrose, Saint Jerome, Saint Augustine and Saint Gregory the Great.

These works are particularly significant because they are the principal surviving evidence of Champaigne’s large-scale decorative painting, much of which once adorned important Parisian palaces but has since been lost. Restoration specialists carefully removed ageing varnishes and earlier additions that had obscured the original colours, allowing the figures to regain much of their depth and luminosity.

Paintings by 19th-century artist Louis Charles Timbal in the chapel’s transept have also been restored. According to the City of Paris, this phase of the project was carried out between late 2025 and August 2026, following earlier work on the tombs and the monumental doors facing Place de la Sorbonne.

A monument still in transition

Although the completion of this restoration phase marks an important milestone, the September opening should not be mistaken for a permanent reopening. Further work is still required on the dome, side chapels and organ gallery, as well as on safety systems and accessibility.

This unfinished state is part of what makes the visit so compelling. Visitors are not simply entering a polished historic monument but encountering a building in the process of being carefully recovered, studied and prepared for a new cultural life.

The long-term restoration programme is being developed through a partnership involving the Chancellerie des Universités de Paris, the City of Paris and the World Monuments Fund. Its aim is eventually to return the chapel to the public as a venue for cultural, scientific and educational events.

How to visit the Sorbonne Chapel

The Sorbonne and its chapel will be open on Saturday, September 19, and Sunday, September 20, 2026, from 10:00 to 17:00.

The chapel is included in the main Sorbonne visitor route, which can be accessed without a reservation. Guided chapel tours at 10:00 on both days are fully booked at the time of publication, but visitors can still enter the chapel independently during the general opening hours.

The entrance is located at 45 Rue des Écoles in Paris’s 5th arrondissement, close to Cluny–La Sorbonne station on Metro line 10. Due to its historic architecture, the chapel itself is not currently accessible to people with reduced mobility.

Because this is a limited opening, arriving early is advisable. Updated information is available through the official Sorbonne European Heritage Days programme.