Officially inaugurated on September 30, 1923, it is housed in what was formerly the Château de Tayac, purchased for this purpose by the State in 1913.

The National Museum of Prehistory presents an exceptionally rich prehistoric past in situ, and conserves some 6 million objects.

[1] A site museum avant la lettre, at the heart of the Vézère Valley "museum site", which declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979 for the importance of the Paleolithic remains,[2] and a reflection of rapidly expanding archaeological research, it now houses one of France's most important Paleolithic collections: lithic and bone industry, art furniture, burials, fauna and the world's first collection of Paleolithic art on engraved or sculpted blocks.

In countless display cases, stone tools, bone and ivory artefacts, life-size reconstructions of prehistoric man and extinct animals, and an understanding of human evolution over the last 400,000 years, are all showcased in a contemporary architectural setting.

The new extension, completed in 2004,[3] occupies new buildings designed by architect Jean-Pierre Buffi, with over 3,600 m2 of new floor space, including 700 m2 of exhibition galleries.