Timeline

Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Maison Giraud, located in L'Argentière-la-Bessée in the Hautes-Alpes, is an example of Baroque civil architecture from the late seventeenth century. The building is distinguished by its arched rooms upstairs and a gypsum fireplace decorated with the date 1698, painted over a window of the main façade. These stylistic elements, combined with a sundial painted on the side façade (now very degraded), suggest a construction completed around 1698, as indicated by the inscription.

The house was partially classified as Historic Monument in 1994, with specific protection for its old gypsum fireplace, located on the ground floor. This official recognition highlights the heritage value of its interior decor, typical of the Alpine baroque. The precise address, 4 Rue du Serre Bas, and its Insee code (05006) place it in the historic center of L'Argentière-la-Bessée, a commune marked by its mining and artisanal past.

The historical context of the late seventeenth century in the Hautes-Alpes was marked by a rural and mining economy, where bourgeois houses like this bear witness to the prosperity of some local families. The Baroque decorations, although rare in this region, reflect Italian or Savoyard influences, introduced by itinerant artisans. The presence of a sundial, albeit damaged, recalls the importance of time markers in the daily life of the time.

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