Maisons
MonumentHidden Treasure
Maisons, located in Moncontour (Département 22), 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
- Moncontour, Département 22, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.3610, -2.6325
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00089338
In the heart of Moncontour, these two Renaissance and classical houses reveal the architectural wealth of inland Brittany: timber-framed walls, sculpted granite and stair turrets form a striking heritage duo.
History
Nestling in the cobbled streets of Moncontour, a medieval town perched on a rocky outcrop in the Côtes-d'Armor department, these two listed houses are one of the most authentic examples of Breton civil architecture from the 16th and 17th centuries. Far from the great fortresses or abbeys that monopolise attention, they embody a discreet elegance, that of the bourgeois and merchants who made Moncontour prosper in the days of the Breton cloth. The larger of the two, set on the corner of a street, is immediately striking for the duality of its materials: an entirely granite masonry ground floor, streaked with sober mouldings, topped by timber-framed upper storeys with half-timbering in a checkerboard pattern characteristic of pre-industrial Brittany. To the rear, a polygonal staircase turret set against a granite façade is reminiscent of the private mansions of the late Middle Ages, which were resolutely focused on comfort and social status. Its neighbour, more modest in size but not in refinement, belongs to the 17th century and reflects a new taste for classical ornamentation. Its two scrolled pilasters, framing a basket-handle door, introduced an Italianate-style architectural vocabulary into the Breton landscape, which spread from Paris and the châteaux of the Loire to the most active Breton towns. To visit these houses is to stroll through a setting that has survived five centuries almost intact. The contrast between the cold minerality of the local granite and the organic warmth of the timber panelling produces an unexpected aesthetic, typically Armorican. Enthusiasts of vernacular architecture, lovers of watercolours and photographers in search of low-angled light will find an inexhaustible subject here. The tour is the perfect complement to a stroll through Moncontour, one of France's most beautiful villages.
Architecture
The two houses illustrate two distinct phases of Breton civil architecture, separated by around a century, and are thus a mini-manual of the evolution of styles in the region. The 16th-century house is based on a structural principle common in Breton villages: a base of dressed granite, which is robust and resistant to damp, supports the timber-framed upper storeys, which may have been filled in with cob, brick or plaster, depending on the period. The two matching granite gables frame this composite elevation, giving it a characteristic, closed silhouette. The discreet mouldings on the ground floor indicate the care taken with social representation, while the polygonal stair turret at the rear - a remnant of a medieval layout - ensures vertical circulation with a remarkable economy of means. The 17th-century house has a more homogeneous and explicitly ornamented façade. The two scrolled pilasters, set on moulded dices and topped with architraves, structure the composition and frame the basket-handle door - a form of arch characteristic of the late Renaissance and early Classicism that is both elegant and practical. A simple frame, centred at the height of the capitals, creates a tableau effect reminiscent of classical façade compositions. The whole reveals a mastery of clever architectural codes, adapted to the scale of a village building with a keen sense of proportion.
Related Figures
Marchands drapiers de Moncontour (XVIe-XVIIe siècle) — commanditaires probables des deux demeuresMaîtres maçons bretons anonymes (XVIe siècle) — bâtisseurs de la maison à pan de bois et tourelleCharpentiers et sculpteurs locaux (XVIIe siècle) — auteurs des pilastres à volutes et de la porte en anse de panierAndré Malraux — ministre de la Culture ayant présidé à la politique de protection du patrimoine urbain ayant abouti à l'inscription de 1964Artisans remaniants la charpente (XVIIe-XVIIIe siècle) — témoins de la vie continue du bâtiment
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Maisons located?
Maisons is located in Moncontour, Département 22 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Maisons built?
Maisons dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Maisons open to visitors?
Maisons is currently closed to visitors.
