Deux maisons
MonumentHidden Treasure
Deux maisons, located in Lannion (Département 22), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Lannion, Département 22, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.7322, -3.4584
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00089272
In the heart of Lannion, two 16th-century houses with entirely slate-clad facades are a rare example of Breton Renaissance civil architecture, and have been listed as Historic Monuments since 1926.
History
In old Lannion, a medieval town nestling at the end of the Bay of Lannion on the banks of the River Léguer, two Renaissance houses stand out for an architectural singularity that intrigues as much as it seduces: their façades are clad entirely in slate, from base to ridge, with not a single stone or half-timbered wall visible to the naked eye. This complete cladding in slate, the king material of inland Brittany, gives the two buildings a dark, almost monolithic silhouette, contrasting with the lightness of the timber-framed houses that line the surrounding streets. What makes these two houses truly unique is the radical approach to construction. Whereas most sixteenth-century Breton dwellings are content with a granite base or a simple slate roof, here the slate envelops the entire exterior envelope, providing both decorative cladding and formidable protection against the moisture-laden winds blowing in from the estuary. This cladding system bears witness to the exceptional craftsmanship of the Armorican slate quarrymen of the Renaissance. To visit these houses is to immerse yourself in the dense atmosphere of medieval and Renaissance Lannion, whose historic centre is one of the best preserved in the Côtes-d'Armor. You'll come across them at the turn of a cobbled lane, emerging with an almost austere sobriety that commands respect. Their domestic scale and their place in the town's vibrant urban fabric make this an intimate experience, far removed from the staging of grand monuments. The setting alone is an invitation to take a stroll: Lannion has a remarkable array of timber-framed houses, granite mansions and steep streets leading down to the river. The two buildings are an essential milestone on a heritage trail that reveals five centuries of Breton urban history within a radius of just a few hundred metres.
Architecture
The two houses in Lannion belong to the tradition of Breton Renaissance civil architecture, characterised by simple, compact volumes, steeply pitched roofs covered in slate and facades where the granite stone is generally exposed beneath the rendering. Here, the absolute uniqueness lies in the full cladding of the façades with slate strips laid in clapboard or overlapping scales, in the manner of continuous cladding that completely conceals the underlying load-bearing structure. This system, which is both waterproof and aesthetically coherent, gives the two buildings a dark, unified appearance, reminiscent of certain slate-clad houses found in Anjou or the Loire region, but examples of which are rare in northern Brittany. Both houses have volumes that are typical of 16th-century Breton urban housing: two or three storeys above the street, with steeply pitched gable roofs, themselves covered in slate, creating total visual continuity between the walls and the roof. The openings - windows with mullions or straight granite lintels - are the only elements that break up the dark unity of the slate, adding a rhythmic punctuation to the composition of the façades. The sobriety of the ornamentation, characteristic of Breton civil architecture, contrasts with the technical sophistication of the cladding. Installing slate on façades requires a special kind of craftsmanship: the slats must be carefully calibrated, overlapped and fixed to ensure that they are perfectly watertight, while at the same time withstanding the violent winds of the coast. This know-how, passed down through the slate-makers' guilds of the Armorican region, makes these two houses as much a technical document as a historical record.
Related Figures
Artisans ardoisiers armoricains du XVIe siècle, auteurs du revêtement exceptionnel des façadesMarchands et bourgeois lannionnais de la Renaissance, commanditaires des deux maisonsInspecteurs des Monuments Historiques des Beaux-Arts (années 1920), artisans de la protection officielleFamilles bourgeoises successives du XVIe au XIXe siècle, occupants et gardiens des bâtisses
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Deux maisons located?
Deux maisons is located in Lannion, Département 22 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Deux maisons built?
Deux maisons dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Deux maisons open to visitors?
Deux maisons is currently closed to visitors.