Maison dite la Tupinière ou Grèneterie de Marmoutier
MonumentHidden Treasure
Maison dite la Tupinière ou Grèneterie de Marmoutier, located in Blois (Loir-et-Cher), 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
- Blois, Loir-et-Cher, Centre-Val de Loire
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.5843, 1.3328
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00098368
A discreet medieval vestige in the heart of Blois, La Tupinière bears witness to the economic influence of Marmoutier Abbey on the town: a 14th-15th century "gréneterie" where monks and grain wrote history.
© Wikimedia Commons
History
Tucked away in the urban fabric of Blois, the house known as La Tupinière - or Grèneterie de Marmoutier - is one of those buildings that lets itself be guessed at rather than imposed. Built as a grain store for the monks of the powerful Marmoutier abbey in Tours, it belongs to that category of utilitarian medieval architecture that has survived more for its solid construction than for its splendour. What makes this building truly singular is its double palimpsest: a 14th-century framework reworked in the following century, visible in the transformation of the façade openings and the addition of a west wing. The successive hesitations and ambitions of two generations of monastic builders can be read, as if in a corrected manuscript. The stair tower grafted onto the corner of the central gable adds a touch of late Gothic verticality to the whole. Here, there are no throne rooms or royal galleries, just the echoes of grain being loaded, harvest reports and the silent logistics that enabled an abbey to manage its rural estates from a strategic urban base. Lovers of medieval civil architecture will find much to admire in the masonry, the modelling of the bays and the traces of Gothic alterations. Located in Blois, at the crossroads of the Loire Valley and Sologne, La Tupinière enjoys an exceptional heritage setting. Just a stone's throw from the royal chateau and its Renaissance town houses, it is a reminder that the grandeur of this city was due not only to royal splendour but also to a dense economic network woven by religious institutions of considerable influence.
Architecture
La Tupinière is typical of late Gothic civil architecture in the Loire Valley. The building, constructed from local limestone rubble - tuffeau stone, so characteristic of buildings in the Loire region - has a rectangular floor plan with a west wing added in the 15th century, giving the whole an L-shaped massing. The polygonal stair tower grafted onto the corner of the central gable is the most remarkable feature of the exterior composition: in the Gothic tradition, it is a perfect illustration of the way in which builders in the late Middle Ages combined vertical circulation and architectural representation, even in buildings with a utilitarian purpose. The façades reveal the successive layers of construction. The original 14th-century bays, with their pointed arches and simple prismatic mouldings, were modified in the following century to take on wider, brighter shapes, reflecting changes in interior use. These changes, which can be seen in the masonry, make the building a veritable stone book on medieval building practices. Inside, the volumes are organised to meet the demands of storage: relatively high ceilings, open spaces, easy access for loading. The roof structure, which has probably been reworked several times, contributes to the robustness of the whole, which has retained a fine formal unity over the centuries.
Related Figures
Saint Martin de Tours — fondateur légendaire de l'abbaye de Marmoutier, dont le rayonnement spirituel fonde la puissance économique qui justifiera la création de la gréneterieAbbés de Marmoutier (XIVe-XVe siècle) — commanditaires anonymes des deux phases de construction de la TupinièreLouis XII — roi de France dont le règne (1498-1515) transforme Blois en capitale royale et stimule les chantiers urbains contemporains du remaniement de la gréneterieFrançois Ier — successeur de Louis XII, dont la présence à Blois amplifie le dynamisme architectural de la ville au début du XVIe siècle
Tags
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Maison dite la Tupinière ou Grèneterie de Marmoutier located?
Maison dite la Tupinière ou Grèneterie de Marmoutier is located in Blois, Loir-et-Cher department, Centre-Val de Loire region, France.
When was Maison dite la Tupinière ou Grèneterie de Marmoutier built?
Maison dite la Tupinière ou Grèneterie de Marmoutier dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Maison dite la Tupinière ou Grèneterie de Marmoutier open to visitors?
Maison dite la Tupinière ou Grèneterie de Marmoutier is currently closed to visitors.