Each month, we shine a spotlight on a different space within our new museum trail. After “At the Origins of the Island,” it is now time to discover the gallery: “Sugar Through the Ages.”
Here, you are not simply discovering an ingredient, but a product that has crossed continents, shaped empires, and transformed our eating habits.
History comes to life through immersive scenography, interactive displays, and a vast chronological fresco retracing more than 2,000 years of sugarcane history.
From Distant Origins…
It all begins in New Guinea, where sugarcane was originally chewed raw. In India, the first sugar crystals were developed. The Arab world later refined production techniques and widely spread the famous conical sugar loaves.
You will then follow sugar’s arrival in Europe, where it became a rare and precious commodity, before understanding how it established itself at the heart of global trade.
But this story is also a human one: it reflects the economic and social upheavals that accompanied its rise.
Scenography Designed with the Clémence Farrell Agency
The gallery “Sugar Through the Ages” was conceived — like the entire museum — in collaboration with the Clémence Farrell Agency, a Paris-based agency renowned for its expertise in museum design, scenography, audiovisual production, and multimedia experiences.
As Clémence Farrell explains:
“We can see the full identity of the scenography that we will develop throughout all the historical sections of the project. We combine three-dimensional lettering, dates, diagrams, and many short texts to engage visitors through anecdotal and historical elements that follow one another — and above all, to create a setting built from all this content.”
At the center of the room, a table set as if for a dessert feast immerses you in an atmosphere that is both indulgent and intriguing. Riddles, videos, archives, and historical objects punctuate your discovery.
The visit concludes on a contemporary note, with a look at today’s sugars and a renewed appreciation for more authentic products, such as Mauritian unrefined sugars.
🎥 Discover Clémence Farrell’s interview
An Experience to Be Lived
Playful, educational, and surprising, the gallery “Sugar Through the Ages” reveals how the history of sugar sheds light on the evolution of our societies.
Ready to travel across centuries and continents?
👉 Open Monday to Saturday (including public holidays), from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at L’Aventure du Sucre in Beau Plan.
L’Aventure du Sucre invites you to discover the story of an island shaped by sugar — a vibrant tribute to the people of Mauritius.
Where heritage, culture and culinary discoveries meet, come and explore one of the island’s most iconic attractions!
