Maison d'Auray
MonumentHidden Treasure
Maison d'Auray, located in Auray (Département 56), 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
- Auray, Département 56, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.6661, -2.9784
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00091002
In the heart of the old town of Auray, this old house, listed since 1935, embodies the architectural soul of medieval Brittany, with its half-timbering, corbelling and carved stonework that the centuries have left undamaged.
History
Nestling in the historic district of Saint-Goustan in Auray, one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Morbihan, this old house is a rare and precious example of Breton civil architecture from centuries gone by. Listed as a Historic Monument since 1935, it is part of the discreet but fundamental heritage that gives Auray its distinctive character, halfway between a trading town and a pilgrimage centre. What sets this residence apart from ordinary buildings is its ability to concentrate several generations of Breton craftsmanship in a single edifice: the cutting of local granite stone, the meticulous implementation of the corbelling that juts out into the narrow street, and the sculpted details that betray the prosperity of its former owners. The façades, where the grey stone meets the wood panelling, tell a story that is only imperfectly recorded in the archives. To visit this house is to plunge into the daily life of the merchants and craftsmen who made Auray's fortune in the 15th and 16th centuries. At the time, the town was a busy port, a departure point for pilgrims to Sainte-Anne-d'Auray, and a commercial crossroads between the Rhuys peninsula, Belle-Île and the mainland. The bourgeois houses lining the cobbled streets were a living reminder of this prosperity. The immediate surroundings enhance the experience: the medieval streets of Auray, the port of Saint-Goustan with its half-timbered houses, some of which were home to Benjamin Franklin, and the river Loc'h shimmering below, create a heritage ensemble of a coherence that is rare in France. This house is best appreciated in this overall context, by taking the time to look up at the facade details that everyday life all too often makes us forget.
Architecture
The house is in the tradition of medieval and post-medieval Breton civil architecture, characterised by the predominant use of local granite, a hard, durable material that gives Morbihan buildings their massive, austere appearance, tempered by the precision of the joinery and sculpted details. The street-facing facades, which are relatively narrow in keeping with the custom of medieval urban plots, compensate for this constraint with a strong verticality and a play of corbels that project the upper storeys above the public thoroughfare, a technique that is both functional - to gain more living space - and ostentatious. The openings deserve particular attention: stone mullioned windows, straight or slightly ornate bracketed lintels, any bracketed or finial decorations characteristic of the Breton flamboyant Gothic style. The corners may be reinforced with projecting stone chains, and the roofs, probably covered in natural slate from Anjou or Brittany, slope steeply to cope with the rainfall in Brittany. The interior layout followed the typical plan of a merchant's house: a ground floor given over to trade or crafts, accessible from the street through a wide doorway, and upper floors reserved for family accommodation, served by a wooden or stone staircase set into the wall or a projecting turret. This combination of functions - commerce, storage and housing - is one of the distinctive signatures of Breton urban architecture in the late Middle Ages.
Related Figures
Prosper Mérimée — inspecteur général des Monuments Historiques, initiateur de la politique de protection du patrimoine bâti en FranceCharles de Blois — duc de Bretagne dont la victoire à la bataille d'Auray (1364) scella le destin de la villeJean de Montfort — vainqueur de la bataille d'Auray, fondateur de la lignée ducale qui présida à l'essor de la citéBenjamin Franklin — figura à Saint-Goustan en 1776, symbole de la vitalité marchande du port d'Auray à l'époque moderneGeorges Cadoudal — chef chouan né près d'Auray, dont l'épopée rappelle le rôle de la ville dans les guerres de Vendée
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Maison d'Auray located?
Maison d'Auray is located in Auray, Département 56 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Maison d'Auray built?
Maison d'Auray dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Maison d'Auray open to visitors?
Maison d'Auray is currently closed to visitors.