The traboules of the Croix-Rousse area and La Maison des Canuts

La Maison des Canuts in the heart of the weaving district relates five centuries of the history of silk making in Lyon...

Croix-Rousse, a historic area in Lyon known for its industrious silk weaving activity, reveals its secrets. During this tour, a visit to La Maison des Canuts, a former silk weaving workshop, is the ideal place to discover five centuries of silk weaving in Lyon: in the workshop, you will see a draw loom which inspired Jacquard to invent his famous loom, on which you will witness a demonstration of silk weaving.

Everything is here: you'll learn how the craftsmen worked, from the breeding of silk worms to the creation of magnificent Genoa brocades and velvets, and about the considerable contribution made by the canuts to the present-day textile industry in the Rhône-Alpes area.

Then follow your guide and retrace the footsteps of 19th century canuts through the traboules in the Croix-Rousse area to Place des Terreaux. These passageways are full of the eventful history of the 19th century silk industry, from the Revolution to the subsequent industrial period.