ClasséChurch · protected 1840Église du Vieux-Saint-JeanPart of the building is protectedPhoto: LeZibou · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Ancien couvent des Frères Prêcheurs · Photo: Claudefà · CC BY-SA 4.036historic monuments
History of Perpignan · Monuments historiques
A secteur sauvegardé since 1995, and 36 historic monuments
The Culture ministry lists 36 historic monuments in Perpignan: 20 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 16 inscrit (the second level). The oldest date from prehistory. That’s 3 for every 10,000 residents; the median compared French town has 2.5. We have photos of 35 of them.
Monuments historiques
36
3 per 10,000 residents
median compared town 2.5
median compared town 2.5
Classé
20
the highest protection
Inscrit
16
the second level
Oldest part
Prehistory
of any listed monument
Homes before 1919
5.7%
median compared town 7.4%
In pictures
Perpignan in 35 photos
Nearly every classé monument, photographed. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Ancien grand SéminaireClassé
Ancienne université de PerpignanClassé
Aqueduc des ArcadesClassé
Église Notre-Dame de la RéalClassé
Ancien palais de justiceClassé+30See all photosPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its license; names open the monument’s page.
Protected area
Perpignan has had a protected historic area since 1995
Sites patrimoniaux remarquables on the Culture ministry’s list, with the plan in force.
| Area | Created as | Plan in force |
|---|---|---|
| SPR76-84 | Secteur sauvegardé September 13, 1995 | PSMV (safeguarding plan) July 4, 2019 |
A site patrimonial remarquable protects a whole area rather than one building: inside it, building work follows the area’s own plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France. A PSMV (plan de sauvegarde et de mise en valeur) is the strictest plan: it covers every building, inside as well as out.
The list gives no boundaries, so the map can’t show the area.
Map
Where Perpignan’s monuments stand
Every monument with a point on the ministry’s list; the larger, darker dots are classé.
ClasséInscritWithin 400 m of Ancien Hôtel Pams
16 of 20classé monuments stand within 400 m of Ancien Hôtel Pams, with 23 of the town’s 36 monuments.
Tap a dot to open the monument’s page: its record, photo and the monuments around it.
36 monuments by protection
20 Classé16 Inscrit
Classé is the higher protection: any work on the building needs the State’s permission. Work on an inscrit building must be declared to the State in advance. Around both, building work in sight of the monument (usually within 500 m) needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
Points as the ministry gives them: a monument spread over several plots has one point.
Classé
20 classé monuments in Perpignan
Classé is France’s highest protection for a building, held by about a third of the monuments on the list. 5 of the 20 are protected in part only (a façade, a roof, a room). Each card opens the monument’s page.
ClasséEngineering work · protected 1984Aqueduc des ArcadesPhoto: Sylenius · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséChapel · protected 1974Ancienne chapelle Notre-Dame-des-AngesPhoto: Palauenc05 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséMonument · protected 1913Citadelle ou ancien palais des Rois de Majorque et d'AragonPart of the building is protectedPhoto: kikiarg · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséConvent · protected 1977Ancien couvent des Frères PrêcheursPhoto: Claudefà · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséMonument · protected 1910Ancien grand SéminairePart of the building is protectedPhoto: Claudefà · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Classé
ClasséChâteau · protected 1889Castillet, Grand-Castillet, porte Notre-Dame ou Petit-CastilletPhoto: Palauenc05 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséCathedral · protected 1906Cathédrale Saint-Jean-BaptistePhoto: LeZibou · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséChurch · protected 1983Église Notre-Dame de la RéalPhoto: Sylenius · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Classé
Classé
ClasséHouse · protected 1840Loge des Marchands ou Loge de MerPhoto: Darka66 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséConvent · protected 1988Ancien couvent Sainte-ClairePart of the building is protectedPhoto: Fabricio Cardenas · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Classé
ClasséPublic building · protected 2005Ancienne université de PerpignanPhoto: CRPU Mascançà · CC BY-SA 3.0 es · Wikimedia Commons
Classé
ClasséPublic building · protected 1886Ancien palais de justicePhoto: Enfo · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséHouse · protected 1889Maison, 2 rue des Fabriques-NabotPhoto: Enfo · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséHouse · protected 1928Maison, 7 rue du ThéâtrePart of the building is protectedPhoto: Sylenius · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Inscrit
16 inscrit monuments in Perpignan
Inscrit is the second level of protection: the building is worth keeping, and any work on it must be declared.
All 16, A to Z
Ancien couvent des MinimesAncien magasin Aux Dames de FranceCaserne Saint-JacquesChapelle de Château-Roussillon, ancienne église Sainte-Marie de Château-RoussillonCinéma "Castillet"Couvent des Dames de Saint-SauveurÉglise Saint-MatthieuHôtel Saint-AntoineImmeuble, 2 rue des AbreuvoirsMaison, 3 rue des Fabriques-NabotMonument aux morts départemental de la guerre de 1914-1918Museum, 12 rue Fontaine-NeuveOppidum gallo-romain de RuscinoPierre incrustéeSite archéologique de Saint-Etienne d’OrleTour de Château-Roussillon
3 more, named only by their kind
3 more are named in the list only by their kind: 1 building (immeuble), 1 house (maison) and 1 other, most from the 13th and 14th centuries. The 3 with an address are in the list above, by it.
13th c.1
14th c.1
16th c.1
What’s protected
Churches and religious buildings are the largest group in Perpignan
Each monument under the main domain Mérimée gives it.
Religious buildings12
Houses & homes10
Public & civic4
Military & fortified2
Tombs & cemeteries2
Bridges & engineering1
Archaeological sites1
Shops & trade1
Religious buildings: 12 of 36 monuments (33%).
Mérimée files each monument under one main domain: a château with its chapel counts once. 3 have no domain on the list.
How old
How old Perpignan’s monuments are
Each monument once, by the oldest part the list dates.
Prehistory & Antiquity to the 4th c.1
Middle Ages 5th–15th c.22
16th to 18th century Renaissance to Revolution8
19th century 1801–19001
20th century and later since 19012
23 of 34 dated monuments have parts from before 1500. The oldest dated: Oppidum gallo-romain de Ruscino (Prehistory). 2 monuments have no date on the list.
When protected
Perpignan’s list has grown since 1840
Monuments by the year they were first protected.
1840186018801900192019401960198020002020
First protected, in 1840: Église du Vieux-Saint-Jean and Loge des Marchands ou Loge de Mer. That was France’s first list of monuments historiques, drawn up in Prosper Mérimée’s time as inspector. 5 have been added since 2011.
Born before 1900
95 people born in Perpignan before 1900
The 20 best known on the line, and eight of them below.
Ferdinand de Majorque
Jaubert Gaucelm
Jordi d'Ornos
Anne-Marie Antigo
Hyacinthe Rigaud
Gaspard Rigaud
Antoine Maurin
Amédée Artus
Alexandre Artus
Adolphe Amouroux
Louis Rousselet
Eugène Collache
Jules Pams
Charles Depéret
Raymond Sudre
Henri Bosc
Louis Thomas
Raymond Gigot
André Marty
Carlo Schmid
13501500165018001950
FM
Ferdinand de Majorque1278–1316 · Prince of Majorca
Jd
Jordi d'Ornos1380–1452 · Roman Catholic cardinal
AM
Anne-Marie Antigo1602–1676 · Catalan nun
HR
Hyacinthe Rigaud1659–1743 · Catalan-French baroque painter
GR
Gaspard Rigaud1661–1705 · French painter born in Perpignan
AM
Antoine Maurin1793–1860 · French lithographer
AA
Amédée Artus1815–1892 · French composer and conductor
AA
Alexandre Artus1821–1911 · French composer and conductor
Everyone born in Perpignan Birthplaces from Wikidata, checked against Wikipedia.
Neighbors
Historic monuments in the towns around Perpignan
In brief
Perpignan in brief
Oppidum gallo-romain de Ruscino, from prehistory, is the oldest monument in Perpignan. All told, the list holds 36 historic monuments, 20 of them classé, including Ancien couvent des Frères Prêcheurs. Its old center has been a secteur sauvegardé since 1995. Ancien Hôtel Pams sits at the heart of it all, with 16 of the town’s classé monuments within 400 m.
Of the 34 with a date, 22 come from the Middle Ages. Cinéma "Castillet" carries the Architecture contemporaine remarquable label. Ferdinand de Majorque (1278), Jordi d'Ornos (1380) and Anne-Marie Antigo (1602) are among the 95 people born here before 1900. Beyond that, it has 36 historic monuments, about typical for a town its size (the middle one has 39); per resident it sits near the middle of compared French towns; and 5.7% of its homes were built before 1919, close to the 7.4% in the median compared French town.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Monuments historiques. France protects buildings at two levels. Classé, the higher (about a third of the list), means any work needs the State’s permission; inscrit means work must be declared to the State in advance. The Culture ministry’s Mérimée base lists every protected building, and this page counts them.
- Partly protected. Many entries protect part of a building only (its façades and roofs, a staircase, a painted room). Each counts as one monument, like a fully protected one.
- Where a monument is counted. In the commune named on its protection, moved to today’s commune where communes have since merged. A monument listed for several communes counts in each.
- Sites patrimoniaux remarquables. Since 2016 France’s protected historic areas (the former secteurs sauvegardés, ZPPAUP and AVAP) share one name. Inside one, building work follows the area’s plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
- What isn’t here. Protected objects (furniture, organs, paintings), old buildings with no protection, UNESCO World Heritage listings and labels such as “Plus Beaux Villages de France” aren’t on this list, so this page doesn’t count them.
- No History Grade yet. Everything on this page is described, not graded: France’s History Grade isn’t built yet.
Questions about the history of Perpignan
How many historic monuments are there in Perpignan?
The Culture ministry lists 36 historic monuments in Perpignan: 20 classé and 16 inscrit.
Which monuments in Perpignan are classé?
20, among them Église du Vieux-Saint-Jean, Aqueduc des Arcades, Ancienne chapelle Notre-Dame-des-Anges, Citadelle ou ancien palais des Rois de Majorque et d'Aragon, Ancien couvent des Frères Prêcheurs and Ancien grand Séminaire.
How old are the monuments of Perpignan?
The oldest parts of its listed monuments date from prehistory.
Is Perpignan a protected historic area?
Yes: part of Perpignan has been a site patrimonial remarquable since 1995.
When were monuments in Perpignan first protected?
The first in 1840, the latest in 2023.
How old are the homes in Perpignan?
5.7% of its main homes were built before 1919 (median compared French town: 7.4%).
France has no History Grade yet: this page describes, it doesn’t grade.
Sources: Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée base on POP (immeubles protégés au titre des monuments historiques), October 2026 · Ministère de la Culture, sites patrimoniaux remarquables, October 2026 · INSEE, census 2023 (main homes by build period) · Wikidata and Wikipedia (people born here) · Wikimedia Commons and Wikidata (photos of the monuments, each with its own credit and license) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated November 9, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.