Maison de Du Cerceau
MonumentHidden Treasure
Maison de Du Cerceau, located in Orléans (Loiret), 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
- Orléans, Loiret, Centre-Val de Loire
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.8997, 1.9056
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00098902
A Renaissance gem in Orléans, this 16th-century house has a seductive façade with superimposed orders - Doric, Ionic, Corinthian and composite - and a sculpted door engraved with the Latin inscription PAX HUIC.
© Wikimedia Commons / Wikipedia
History
Standing on the corner of rue Ducerceau in the heart of old Orléans, the house known as the "Du Cerceau" is one of the best-preserved Renaissance civil facades in the city. Its vertical silhouette, punctuated by four superimposed storeys and crowned by a large modillion cornice, immediately catches the eye of the discerning visitor. What makes this residence truly unique is the skilful rigour with which its façades have been ordered. The pilasters scrupulously respect the hierarchy of ancient orders as codified by Vitruvius and brought back into fashion by the Italian Renaissance: Doric on the first floor, Ionic on the second, Corinthian on the third and composite on the upper level. This architectural approach, rare in the civil architecture of Orléans, betrays a remarkable humanist culture and a patron keen to display his knowledge of the great treatises of Antiquity. The entrance door alone is an anthology of Renaissance woodwork. Its sculpted panels frame a cartouche bearing the inscription PAX HUIC - "Peace to this house" - a phrase taken from the Gospel according to Saint Luke, and found on many 16th-century bourgeois homes as a sign of piety and domestic serenity. The glazed, latticed transom above it adds a delicate touch of elegance to the ensemble. The visit naturally focuses on contemplating the façade, which is remarkably legible despite the centuries. The mullioned windows, projecting tables and cartouches - even those whose shields were burnt off, probably during the Revolution - provide a crash course in the ornamental vocabulary of 16th-century France. The facade facing the private cul-de-sac, with its blind bays plastered in the same order, reveals a compositional coherence pushed to its most discreet limits. Set in the dense urban fabric of the historic centre of Orléans, close to Sainte-Croix Cathedral and the Renaissance town houses that dot the city, Du Cerceau's house is part of an exceptional heritage trail. It is a reminder that, in the 16th century, Orléans was one of the most active cities in the kingdom, a crossroads on the Loire and home to a cultured and prosperous bourgeoisie.
Architecture
Du Cerceau's house is distinguished by an urban façade of a coherence and sophistication rare in sixteenth-century French civil architecture. Built on four horizontal levels separated by continuous entablatures, it develops a progressive logic that borrows directly from the humanist treatises of the Italian Renaissance and their dissemination in France via the engravings of architects such as Androuet du Cerceau. The ground floor, treated as a basement, opens onto the street through two arched arcades framing the commercial space, completed by a finely sculpted Renaissance woodwork door. Above, three storeys of accommodation superimpose the ancient orders in their canonical hierarchy - Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, composite - marked by pilasters framing, on each level, two mullioned windows and a half-crossed window, giving a rhythm of five almost identical openings per storey. This rhythmic treatment, in which the ornamentation responds to a mathematical logic, gives the whole an unexpected monumentality for a town house. The flowerbeds of the bays are embellished with projecting tables and sculpted cartouches. The façade ends in an imposing cornice with modillions that crowns the whole with authority. Back on the private cul-de-sac, the same architectural layout is repeated, but with plastered blind bays, testifying to a compositional rigour that goes beyond the representative façade alone.
Related Figures
Jacques Androuet du Cerceau (vers 1510 – vers 1585) — architecte et graveur, figure tutélaire dont le nom est associé à la maison sans preuve documentaire formelleJean Androuet du Cerceau (vers 1585 – vers 1649) — fils du précédent, architecte du roi, dont la famille reste liée à la tradition architecturale ligérienneVitruve (Ier siècle av. J.-C.) — théoricien romain dont les traités sur les ordres architecturaux sont appliqués avec rigueur sur la façade
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Maison de Du Cerceau located?
Maison de Du Cerceau is located in Orléans, Loiret department, Centre-Val de Loire region, France.
When was Maison de Du Cerceau built?
Maison de Du Cerceau dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Maison de Du Cerceau open to visitors?
Maison de Du Cerceau is currently closed to visitors.