Maison du 15e siècle
MonumentHidden Treasure
Maison du 15e siècle, located in Sarlat-la-Canéda (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
- Sarlat-la-Canéda, Dordogne, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 44.8893, 1.2167
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00082977
In the heart of Sarlat, this 15th-century Gothic house rises up from its large gable on the street, with its three-lobed windows and finely worked columns, a rare example of medieval Périgord civil architecture.
History
In the maze of golden streets of Sarlat-la-Canéda, this 15th-century house stands out as one of the most authentic examples of Gothic civil architecture in the Périgord Noir. Unlike the châteaux and cathedrals that often monopolise the attention of visitors, this is a true example of a medieval bourgeois home, without any of the trappings of late Romantic reconstruction. Its large gable on the street, typical of medieval urban architecture in the south-west, gives the façade a striking verticality that contrasts with the stone-roofed houses that surround it. The three-lobed windows, a quintessential Gothic ornament, testify to the care taken with the decoration by an owner keen to display his social status in a prosperous town at the time, a commercial crossroads and the seat of the bishopric of Périgord. The wooden mullions and transoms, both structural and decorative elements, have survived the centuries with remarkable integrity. Some of the windows still retain vestiges of colonnettes and trefoil motifs, sculpted details that illustrate the refinement of local craftsmanship in the late Middle Ages. These ornamental fragments echo the other Gothic jewels of Sarlat, listed as a Town of Art and History. A visit to this house is a natural part of a stroll through the narrow streets of the old town, offering the attentive visitor a glimpse into the daily life of a 15th-century Sarlat notable. The building will appeal to both the architectural historian and the simply curious visitor who loves ancient stonework and preserved medieval atmospheres.
Architecture
The 15th-century house has a street-facing facade organised around a large gable, a typical feature of medieval urban architecture that optimises the use of land while at the same time establishing the building's presence in the urban fabric. The steeply sloping gable gives the building a slender silhouette, typical of civil Gothic buildings in Périgord. The decorative elements of the façade bear witness to a carefully mastered Gothic vocabulary: the three-lobed windows, whose arches are divided into three lobes by sculpted speckles, are the building's most immediately recognisable visual signature. Some of the bays retain vestiges of colonnettes and trefoil motifs - the quatrefoil and trefoil being emblematic ornaments of the flamboyant Gothic style that spread throughout the south-west in the 15th century. The wooden pans and mullions, which structure the window infills, add a chromatic and textured note that contrasts with the golden ochre-coloured local limestone. The building uses traditional Périgord Noir materials: golden-brown limestone extracted from local quarries, carefully cut for the decorative elements and used as rubble for the running parts. In keeping with regional practice at the time, the roof was probably covered with limestone lauzes, the small stone slabs that give Sarlat roofs their distinctive appearance. The whole ensemble is a coherent and precious example of a medieval bourgeois house in the Périgord urban environment.
Related Figures
Propriétaire bourgeois du XVe siècle (commanditaire probable, identité non établie)Inspecteur des Monuments Historiques ayant instruit l'inscription en 1946André Malraux (ministre de la Culture, dont la loi de 1962 sauva le centre historique de Sarlat)Évêques de Sarlat (figures dominantes de la vie urbaine médiévale sarladaise)La Boétie (Étienne de La Boétie, fils illustre de Sarlat, né à deux pas en 1530)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Maison du 15e siècle located?
Maison du 15e siècle is located in Sarlat-la-Canéda, Dordogne department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France.
When was Maison du 15e siècle built?
Maison du 15e siècle dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Maison du 15e siècle open to visitors?
Maison du 15e siècle is currently closed to visitors.