Château de la Châsse
CastleHidden Treasure
Château de la Châsse, located in Iffendic (Département 35), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- Castle
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Iffendic, Département 35, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- Mérimée Reference
- PA35000026
In the heart of Brittany, the Château de la Châsse holds an unsuspected treasure: a marble bas-relief by Houdon, a masterpiece of French neoclassical sculpture commissioned in 1777 by a grieving aristocrat.
History
Nestling in the bocage of Iffendic, in Ille-et-Vilaine, Château de la Châsse is one of those discreet Breton manor houses whose sober façade conceals an artistic history of rare intensity. Built in the last quarter of the 18th century, it epitomises the cultivated provincial nobility who, on the eve of the Revolution, looked to Paris and its great workshops to embellish their country homes. What really sets this château apart from its Armorican neighbours is the exceptional link it has with Jean-Antoine Houdon, official sculptor of the Enlightenment and portrait painter of genius. He commissioned a marble bas-relief here in 1781 - a work of private commission, imbued with funereal elegance and aristocratic sentiment, which testifies to the influence of the Parisian artistic court even in the Breton countryside. Now in the Musée du Louvre, this bas-relief is the central thread in a touching family story. Commissioned between 1777 and 1781 by two women united in mourning - the Countess d'Ennery and her sister, the Countess Cécile Cahuvigny de Blot - it bears all the sensitivity of an era that knew how to transform pain into sculpted beauty. The estate itself, with its English-style park typical of late eighteenth-century Brittany, offers a green setting where time seems suspended. Lovers of sensitive heritage, neoclassical sculpture and human stories carved in marble will find this a rare stopover, far from the beaten tourist track, in contact with an intimate and cultured Brittany.
Architecture
Built between 1775 and 1800, Château de la Châsse displays the sober, balanced characteristics of the Breton provincial classical style of the late 18th century. The local building tradition favours the use of granite quarried in the Rennes region, a noble material that gives the façades the characteristic grey-blue hue of the Ille-et-Vilain bocage. Horizontal lines dominate, the openings are regularly punctuated, and the overall impression is one of controlled rigour, far removed from the ostentation of the great châteaux of the Loire Valley. The massed layout, typical of Breton manor houses of the period, is built around a main building flanked by outbuildings set at right angles to one another, forming a main courtyard that opens onto the estate. The steeply pitched roofs, covered in Angers slate, are a reminder that we are here in the architectural tradition of eastern Brittany, on the border between Norman and Armorican influences. Dormers with triangular pediments pierce the attic, giving the silhouette that slender character typical of provincial classicism. Inside, the ground floor reception rooms feature painted wood panelling and ashlar fireplaces, the natural setting for works of art such as the bas-relief by Houdon. The park surrounding the residence, laid out in the English landscape style so popular at the end of the 18th century, harmoniously complements the architectural ensemble, offering carefully composed views of the main building from the winding paths that cross it.
Related Figures
Jean-Antoine Houdon — sculpteur des Lumières, auteur du bas-relief en marbre de 1781La comtesse d'Ennery — commanditaire du bas-relief, veuve à l'origine de cette commande funèbreLa comtesse Cécile Cahuvigny de Blot — sœur du défunt, co-commanditaire de l'œuvre de Houdon
Map
Coordinates not available for this monument.
Tags
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Château de la Châsse located?
Château de la Châsse is located in Iffendic, Département 35 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Château de la Châsse built?
Château de la Châsse dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Château de la Châsse open to visitors?
Château de la Châsse is currently closed to visitors.