When the Automobile Club de l’Ouest began work to refurbish its circuit in 1949 after a ten-year wartime hiatus, everything had to be rebuilt, the previous facilities having been plundered, burnt down or destroyed. All that remained was a field of rubble and the frames of the circuit’s main grandstands... plus two “start” and “finish” signs standing side by side on the track between bomb craters, bearing witness to another era. They were a sign of the glorious past of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 1939 race, held just two months before the war began on 1st September.

Poignantly depicted in an illustration by painter Géo Ham, the two signs poised alone on the eerie circuit were later restored to their former splendour, but first there was extensive work to be done. The conflict over, it took four years to rebuild the grandstands, garages, administrative and hospitality buildings, and to resurface the track. The first post-war La Mans race was held in 1949. The two enamelled lava stone signs were preserved, located a few metres from the garages marking the point where the 13.492 km mark merged with kilometre 0. And they were not alone... there were kilometre markers posted every 500 metres around the track and similar signs indicating the name of each corner on the circuit. They were produced by Michelin following a donation from the Le Mans-based Défense Automobile et Sportive (DAS) insurance company, founded by ACO General Secretary Georges Durand.

Kilometre markers were first placed around the 17.262 track in 1926. At that time, they were enamel signs and were donated by car-builder Chenard et Walcker. One of those signs has now been reinstalled by the notorious Pontlieue hairpin. The marshal post numbers were subsequently based on the kilometre markers.

The old signs were removed in 1988 to be replaced with safer PVC signs. One of the 1930 Michelin signs - kilometre 5 - was donated by the ACO to DAS. It ended up in the insurance company’s attic and, at the time of a property deal, found itself with a new owner. It went up at auction a few years later, at an estimated price of €8,500-12,000 and eventually selling for just over €11,000. The ACO kept the two original “start” and “finish” signs, which are now found in the 24 Hours of Le Mans Museum. The “start” sign is one of the first things you’ll see when you begin your visit and, after a couple of hours spent browsing through the museum’s collections, you will come to the “finish” sign, indicating that your visit is complete.

With 140 vehicles, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest spotlights the history of motoring in Sarthe and the international success of its race. Bentley, Ferrari, Jaguar, Ford, Porsche, Matra, Audi… the marques that have put their stamp on Le Mans are all in pride of place, treating visitors to the very best of the world’s greatest endurance race. In addition to the permanent installations, an additional 350m² are set aside for temporary exhibitions. After their tour of the museum, visitors can also take a look around the Bugatti Circuit.

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