Vientiane

The Vientiane Centre, Laos

Vientiane Centre

Head: Michel Lorrillard
Ecole française d'Extrême-Orient, FEML
1 rue Sisangvone - Unit 6
Bane Naxay
BP 3248
Vientiane, Laos
Tel.: + 856 21 41 46 20
Fax: + 856 21 41 39 52
michel.lorrillard@efeo.net

In 1951 the Laotian government entrusted the EFEO with the mission to preserve and restore its historical monuments and to manage the nation's museums. At the same time, the EFEO was authorized to carry out archaeological excavations. The School's official presence in Laos led to the arrival of the art historian and philologist Henri Deydier, the ethnologist Charles Archaimbault - renowned for his comparative work on Laotian principalities, and Pierre-Bernard Lafont, who resided at the Centre until 1966. Earlier in the 20th century, Henri Parmentier conducted the first research on the religious architecture of Laos and the Khmer temple Vat Phu, while Madeleine Colani carried out a pioneering investigation of a proto-historic site, the Plain of Jars. A new cooperation agreement, reached in 1993, with the Laotian Ministry of Information and Culture enabled the EFEO to open a Franco-Laotian Centre for Buddhist and Historical Studies in Vientiane.

Current research at the EFEO Centre in Vientiane is primarily conducted in historical studies based on philology and epigraphy; however, the Centre also undertakes work in disciplines such as ethnology, art history and archaeology. The sum of this activity contributes to a wider program of multidisciplinary research on Buddhist societies spanning Asia, from India to China.

Laos, a landlocked country relatively little affected by its rapidly changing surroundings, offers researchers exceptional conditions for on-site investigation.

Current research program:

  • General epigraphic inventory and publication of Laotian inscriptions
  • Study of Laotian religious literature
  • Material and artistic culture of Laotian Buddhism (archaeology, iconography)
  • Comparative ethnology of Austro-Asiatic minority societies

The Vientiane Center includes a library for the humanities and social sciences -- the only research library in Laos. Since 2007 its publication office has edited a series titled Texts and documents on Laos. The Centre also provides facilities for French and European scholars, as well as doctoral students and EFEO fellowship holders.

EFEO News
Welcoming delegations to the EFEO 2026-2027
Paris, France, 14 October 2025
The recruitment campaign for delegates to the EFEO for the year 2026-2027 is now open. Applications must be submitted no later than 14 October 2025.

Learn more (in French)
Library
Paris, France, 26 June 2025
The EFEO library in Paris will be closed until 2 p.m. on Tuesday 1 July 20025.

It is open at its usual times, from Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm.

Please make your book reservation requests via the catalogue, and your archive consultation requests via the form on https://archives.efeo.fr/ (bottom left of the home page).

Consult the catalogs and digital tools:
Books and periodicals catalog
- Archives and manuscripts catalog
- Digital heritage library

Please check the EFEO's Facebook page and Twitter account regularly for any updates to the conditions of public access.
Direction of Resources
Paris, France, 26 June 2025

Reporting to the Director General of Administration, , you will be responsible for managing the Resources Department. You will manage the activity of the support functions and implement the public policies in your field, with a view to efficiency and innovation. You will also perform the duties of Prevention Adviser.

Application deadline: 20 July 2025: https://bit.ly/4epSXeT
Lecture
Paris, France, 18 June 2025
On the occasion of the exhibition Angkor Royal Bronzes: Art of the Divine presented at the Guimet - Musée national des arts asiatiques until September 8, of which he is co-curator, Brice Vincent will present "Bronzes royaux d'Angkor, un art du divin: nouveaux regards sur la métallurgie du cuivre dans le Cambodge angkorien". This lecture is organised jointly by the Association des Amis d'Angkor and the EFEO.

At 5.30 p.m. in the Grand Salon of the Maison de l'Asie, subject to availability.
Conference
Paris, France, 12 June 2025
On Thursday 12 and Friday 13 June, Fabienne Jagou, in collaboration with Cameron Warner (University of Aarhus, Denmark) and Nicole Willock (Old Dominion University, USA), is organising a conference entitled ‘Succession in Times of Change in the Tibetan World’ at the Maison de l'Asie.