Immeuble
MonumentHidden Treasure
Immeuble, located in Périgueux (Dordogne), 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
- Périgueux, Dordogne, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 45.1848, 0.7216
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00082743
At the heart of Périgueux, this 16th-century Renaissance building reveals the town's mercantile prosperity: façades with moulded windows, pilasters and sculpted decorations bearing witness to the refinement of the Périgourdin Renaissance.
History
Amid the maze of medieval and Renaissance streets in Périgueux, this 16th-century building stands out as one of the most eloquent reminders of the city's urban golden age. Listed as a Historic Monument since 1936, it is one of an exceptional group of civil residences that have made Périgueux one of the finest examples of Renaissance architecture in south-western France. What sets this building apart from the ordinary buildings of the period is the quality of its architectural vocabulary: the Périgord Renaissance was not content to ape the Italian models imported by the court of François I, it interpreted them with a local flavour, combining the golden limestone of Périgord with lessons from the Loire. The street facades, punctuated by bays of stone-panelled windows, reveal a remarkable mastery of composition and ornamental design. The visit begins with an immersion in the densest Renaissance urban fabric in Périgueux. As you stroll through the neighbouring streets - particularly around Place de la Clautre and the Saint-Front district - you realise just how much this building forms part of a rare architectural continuum, with each façade interacting with its neighbours through the same sculpted motifs, the same proportions and the same noble use of stone. The setting itself contributes to the visitor's emotion: Périgueux, a Gallo-Roman and medieval city, offers a unique historical stratification, from the temple of Vesunna to the domes of Saint-Front cathedral. The 16th-century building is part of this long history, a chapter in a fully-fledged provincial Renaissance, a far cry from royal splendour but with a distinctly bourgeois and mercantile elegance.
Architecture
The building belongs to the Périgord Renaissance style of civil architecture, a style characterised by the synthesis between the local building tradition in Périgord limestone and the ornamental vocabulary brought over from Italy via the great French royal building sites. The façade, facing the street in accordance with the urban custom of the time, is probably laid out in regular bays, punctuated by finely moulded stone-paned windows whose sills and lintels are sculpted with Renaissance motifs: oves, heart-shaped grapes, medallions with profiles or plant scrolls. The materials used are typical of the region: the local limestone, with a warm hue ranging from creamy white to golden depending on its exposure, is worked with a precision that bears witness to the skills of Périgord stonemasons. The eaves walls are built of limestone rubble, while the decorative elements - window surrounds, cornices and pilasters - are made of carefully dressed ashlar. The roof, which is typical of the town, is covered in canal tiles or slate, depending on the exact date of construction and subsequent alterations. The interior layout follows the usual plan for 16th-century tenement buildings or urban residences: a ground floor used for commercial purposes or storage, opening onto the street, topped by one or two storeys of living accommodation served by a spiral staircase or straight banisters, often housed in a stair tower set back from the courtyard. Beamed ceilings, fireplaces with carved stone mantels and terracotta tiled floors make up the bulk of the original interior décor.
Related Figures
Prosper Mérimée — inspecteur général des Monuments Historiques, initiateur de l'inventaire du patrimoine civil français dont cet immeuble est l'héritier directFrançois Ier — roi de France dont le mécénat royal diffusa la Renaissance italienne dans les provinces, influençant directement l'architecture périgordine du XVIe siècleNotables marchands périgordins du XVIe siècle — commanditaires anonymes qui financèrent ces demeures urbaines témoignant de la prospérité commerciale de PérigueuxJean de Tarde — humaniste et cartographe périgourdin (1561-1636), contemporain de l'édifice et figure emblématique de l'élite intellectuelle localeArchitectes et maçons de la Renaissance périgourdine — compagnons itinérants formés aux chantiers de la Loire, qui apportèrent le vocabulaire Renaissance en Périgord
Tags
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Immeuble located?
Immeuble is located in Périgueux, Dordogne department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France.
When was Immeuble built?
Immeuble dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Immeuble open to visitors?
Immeuble is currently closed to visitors.