The Hôtel Dubocage de Bléville Museum was designed in the 16th century by Italian architect Jérôme Bellarmato on behalf of King Francis I. This mansion was formerly owned by French navigator Michel Joseph Dubocage de Bléville (1676-1727), who embarked on a nine-year-long commercial journey to the Pacific Ocean, from 1707 to 1716, during which he discovered « l'Île de la Passion » – also known as Clipperton Island – off the coast of Mexico, on Friday 3rd April 1711.
As he returned to Le Havre in 1716, he settled at the Hôtel Dubocage de Bléville, where he established a maritime trading and company and a cabinet of curiosities. Now converted into a museum, the first floor of the main building is dedicated to Clipperton Island.
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