Lost Grace Kelly wedding film recovered from Palace archives
By Zak Jackson, MonacoViews Editorial
The twelfth film featuring Grace Kelly has been rediscovered in the Palais Princier archives, prompting a restoration project and a dedicated exhibition.
A significant archival find has emerged from the Palais Princier: the original film reels of 'Le Mariage de Monaco', long considered lost, have been located by Thomas Fouilleron, director of the Palace Archives, and Vincent Vatrican, director of the Institut Audiovisuel de Monaco. The discovery marks the recovery of what is counted as the twelfth film in Grace Kelly's filmography.
The find has set in motion two parallel projects. The reels are to undergo full restoration, while a dedicated exhibition - titled 'Mariage du siècle. Monaco. 12-19 avril 1956' - is being organised to bring the story of the April 1956 wedding of Prince Rainier III and Grace Kelly to a wider audience. The exhibition title anchors the event to its precise dates, seven decades on.
Fouilleron and Vatrican have spoken publicly about the circumstances of the discovery, describing the process of identifying and retrieving the original canisters. For Monaco residents and visitors, the restoration and exhibition represent a rare opportunity to see authenticated footage of one of the Principality's defining moments in its original, recovered form.