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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The building located at 26 rue Saint-Georges in Rennes is a house dating from the first half of the seventeenth century, representative of the Breton civil architecture of that time. Its ground floor, built of assembled granite, contrasts with the upper floors in coated bellows, while the skylights and window frames are carefully worked in assembled bellows. These choices of materials and techniques reflect both aesthetic research and adaptation to the local resources available in the seventeenth century.

Inside, the building houses exceptional decorative elements, reflecting the refinement of its occupants or sponsors. A large wooden fireplace, decorated with imposing mouldings, dominates the space, while a small cabinet contains two doric pillars supporting a beam painted with coloured rinsels. The wall panels, illustrating mythological scenes such as the punishment of Phaëton, as well as a door swing representing Judith (now preserved at the Rennes Museum), suggest a desire to mark social prestige by art and classical culture. These interior decorations, combined with an external staircase with wooden balusters, led to partial protection of the monument by order of 18 January 1967.

The building is part of the urban landscape of Rennes, a city growing in the seventeenth century, marked by its administrative and judicial role in Brittany. The facades and roofs, as well as the protected interior elements, offer an overview of the lifestyles of the local elites of the time. Their preservation makes it possible today to study the artistic influences and constructive techniques that characterized the region, between local traditions and classical contributions inspired by the Renaissance.

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