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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The bakery of the rue de Poitou, located at 29 rue de Poitou in the 3rd arrondissement of Paris, occupies the ground floor of a 17th century building, completely restored at the beginning of the 20th century. Although the building itself has no architectural interest, its history is marked by the presence of a bakery in the late seventeenth century. This place is especially remarkable for its interior decoration and its front, created by the renowned workshop Benoist et Fils, specialized in the decoration of food shops between 1885 and 1936. The installation was carried out by Ripoche, a contractor associated with this project.

The decoration of the bakery is of exceptional quality, characteristic of the style of the Benoist workshop. The facade, made of moulded wood, is decorated with four canvases painted under glass depicting scenes related to the bakery: a mill, a seeder, and a harvester (a panel of which has been redone). Inside, the ceiling evokes a "heaven" bounded by a feast, recalling the Watteau ceilings, a recurring theme by Benoist. The four seasons are illustrated by landscapes at angles, while two other canvases represent harvest and sowing. The cornices, on the other hand, are decorated with garlands of flowers (anemones, roses, lilacs).

The original furniture, including a box and two marble desserts, is still present. This decoration, as well as the front, was protected by a registration order under the Historic Monuments on 23 May 1984. The exact address of the monument is the 29 rue de Poitou, at the corner of Saintonge Street, in a district where handicrafts and the mouth trade have played a central role for centuries. The accuracy of its location is estimated as "a priori satisfactory", with a rating of 6/10.

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