PARIS, France (REUTERS) - This mint in Paris has been making coins for more than 1,000 years.

Now, it is opening its doors to the public, who will be able to see its 150 craftsmen at work in a new museum.

Also on display will be a vast collection of coins and once-lost treasure chests.

"The first thing that's unusual is that we are a museum in the heart of Paris which is attached to the last factory in Paris. So we're not just a museum of historical artefacts, we're a museum of a living business here in Paris," CEO of Paris mint, Aurelien Rousseau said.

Among the items on show will be Dutch coins recovered from the bottom of the sea and treasures confiscated by the French from conquered territories in Southeast Asia in the 19th century.

The industrial production of coins in circulation has been farmed out to a factory in the country's southwest.

However, the Paris mint, which bills itself as the oldest factory in the city, produces collectors' editions and specialist medallions.