Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Pressoirs d'Epernon, also called Cellier de Haute Bruyère, are a former semi-entered stoneware pantry, located on Rue des Aironcelles in Epernon (Eure-et-Loir). Romanesque architecture, it dates mainly from the twelfth century, with extensions or mentions of activity in the thirteenth century. The building, longer than 30 meters, is divided into three vaulted naves supported by carved capital pillars. It was used to store and squeeze the harvests of the nuns of the order of Fontevrault, owners of the surrounding vines before the Revolution.

Prior to 1789, this store was a dependency of the priory of Haute Bruyère, affiliated with the order of Fontevrault. The nuns stored the food sold on the nearby market and operated two winepresses there. Confiscated as a national good in 1792 during the Revolution, it was sold that year. Ranked a Historic Monument in 1926, it illustrates the medieval wine and religious heritage of the Centre-Val de Loire region.

The building, which has been owned by the municipality of Epernon since its classification, has remarkable architectural features: internal foothills, irregular openings, and vaults in local sandstone. Its state of conservation and history make it a rare testimony of monastic farming and commercial practices in the Middle Ages. Sources also mention its use as "banner presses", highlighting its central economic role for the community before its nationalization.

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