Maison médiévale
MonumentHidden Treasure
Maison médiévale, located in Périgueux (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
- Périgueux, Dordogne, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 45.1850, 0.7236
- Mérimée Reference
- PA24000043
At the heart of Périgueux, this Romanesque medieval house from the 13th century conceals within it a Gothic mural painting of rare intimacy and three centuries of history layered between its stone walls.
History
Nestling in the dense urban fabric of Périgueux, capital of the Dordogne and a city with Gallo-Roman roots, this medieval house is one of the most discreet and authentic examples of Romanesque civil architecture in Périgord. Far from the great fortresses that dot the Vézère valley, it embodies another form of historical permanence: that of the ordinary dwelling that has survived the centuries, modified without ever being erased. What makes this building truly exceptional is the visible layering of its successive ages. The original Romanesque building, erected in the 13th century, still has a three-storey interior arranged around a vast central hall, a characteristic feature of medieval bourgeois houses in the south-west. Several period windows have survived the alterations, providing a striking dialogue between the carved stone of yesteryear and the town that has been rebuilt around them. The most precious discovery is the 13th-century mural painting in the second-floor bedroom. A rare vestige of medieval interior decoration in a civil house - the vast majority of surviving wall paintings belong to religious buildings - it lends a particular emotional density to the place. It gives us a glimpse into the intimate lives of the people of Périgueux at the time of the great Gothic cathedrals. In the 16th and 17th centuries, a series of buildings were added around the original Romanesque core, reflecting the renewed prosperity of the Périgord city after the devastation of the Hundred Years' War and the Wars of Religion. This cohabitation between the austere Romanesque and the later additions, imbued with Renaissance and provincial classicism, creates a rare and precious architectural conversation. Visiting this house is like taking a few steps through eight hundred years of urban history. For heritage enthusiasts, lovers of medieval history or travellers in search of the authentic, it represents an essential stop-off point on the discovery of Périgueux, a city already rich in its Vesunna heritage and its Saint-Front cathedral.
Architecture
The building is based on a typically Périgord Romanesque layout: a massive rectangular floor plan, raised on three levels, with the interior space dominated by a vast hall forming the heart of the spatial layout. This vertical layout, inherited from 13th-century building practices, is reminiscent of the tower-houses that can still be found in a number of towns in the south-west, including Figeac and Sarlat. The load-bearing walls of local limestone, the dominant material in the Dordogne basin, give the whole structure the austere robustness characteristic of the Romanesque style. The partially preserved original windows are one of the most precious architectural features of the façade. These double-splayed openings, some of which are probably geminated and surmounted by semi-circular or slightly pointed arches in keeping with the practice of the early Gothic period, make it possible to accurately date the initial construction phase. The mural painting on the second floor, which adorns the bedroom on the noble floor, illustrates the care taken by the first owners to decorate the interior: the decorative motifs, whether geometric, floral or figurative according to the custom of the time, were both an aesthetic element and a marker of social status. The group of 17th-century buildings grafted around the medieval core introduces a different architectural grammar: higher roofs, windows with moulded frames, more complex articulation of volumes bearing witness to the provincial classicism in vogue under Louis XIII and Louis XIV. The coexistence of these two stylistic registers, far from being discordant, illustrates the ability of vernacular architecture to absorb changes in taste without denying its foundations.
Related Figures
Bourgeois ou marchand périgourdin commanditaire de la construction initiale au XIIIe siècleArtiste ou atelier de peintres muraux actif à Périgueux au XIIIe siècle, auteur du décor du deuxième étagePropriétaire du XVIIe siècle ayant ordonné l'extension de l'ensemble bâtiÉvêques de Périgueux, figures d'autorité influençant l'architecture civile médiévale localeArchitectes des Bâtiments de France ayant instruit le dossier d'inscription en 2004
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Maison médiévale located?
Maison médiévale is located in Périgueux, Dordogne department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France.
When was Maison médiévale built?
Maison médiévale dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Maison médiévale open to visitors?
Maison médiévale is currently closed to visitors.