---
title: "Dr. Yohann Guffroy presents the history of UNIL and EPFL scientific instruments in Lausanne; 1,000 instruments inventoried since 2003"
sdDatePublished: "2026-06-17T14:58:00Z"
source: "https://www.geneve.com/en/events/the-unil-and-epfl-collection-of-scientific-instruments-a-history-of-physics-in-lausanne?chatbase=true\u0026cHash=d73bc7b4b9f4ad802af06226946d470c"
topics:
  - name: "science and technology"
    identifier: "medtop:13000000"
  - name: "scientific research"
    identifier: "medtop:20000735"
  - name: "scientific institution"
    identifier: "medtop:20000741"
  - name: "culture"
    identifier: "medtop:20000038"
  - name: "tourism and leisure industry"
    identifier: "medtop:20000331"
locations:
  - "Geneva"
  - "Lausanne"
---


Dr. Yohann Guffroy presents the history of UNIL and EPFL scientific instruments in Lausanne; 1,000 instruments inventoried since 2003

The UNIL and EPFL Collection of Scientific Instruments: A History of Physics in Lausanne | Geneva Tourism

June 2026 Wednesday 24 7:30 pm - 8:30 pm More dates

Dates and times Wednesday 24 June 2026 June 2026 Wednesday 24 7:30 pm - 8:30 pm More dates

The UNIL and EPFL Collection of Scientific Instruments: A History of Physics in Lausanne

On June 24 at 7:30 p.m., Dr. Yohann Guffroy presents in Lausanne the history of UNIL and EPFL scientific instruments, exploring Lausanne’s scientific heritage.

Wednesday, June 24 at 7:30 p.m.

The UNIL and EPFL Scientific Instrument Collection: A History of Physics in Lausanne

By Dr. Yohann Guffroy University of Geneva and EPFL Venue : Musée d'histoire des sciences (MHS), Geneva

Dr. Yohann Guffroy’s research focuses on the history of knowledge and technology, particularly on the visual representation of technical objects. The historical scientific instruments jointly preserved by the University of Lausanne (UNIL) and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL), some dating back to the 18th century, have only recently been brought together as a collection. Indeed, it is only over the past twenty years, following major institutional changes, that the approximately one thousand objects comprising the collection have been “rediscovered” and gradually inventoried, appearing at first as a heterogeneous assemblage rather than a historically constituted whole. This lecture will detail the process through which these objects were transformed into a collection by Jean-François Loude beginning in 2003, and will present the findings of a study into the long history of these scientific instruments. To reconstruct the memory of the collection, numerous documents from the University archives have been examined, including correspondence, reports, invoices, inventories, and other records. Exploring the history of the collection also makes it possible to trace the development of science in Lausanne—particularly physics—a field whose study has so far focused more on intellectual history than on material history. Collection d’instruments scientifiques UNIL-EPFL

Geneva Tourism Accessibilty in Geneva Sustainability in Geneva About us Work with us Contact us

Leisure See & Do Eat & Drink What's on Plan & Stay

Professional Meetings & conferences Travel trade Geneva Excellence Club Geneva Filmmaking Media corner

Using the site General terms Legal mentions Cookies settings