Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The hotel located at 22 rue Joyeuse in Bourges is a monument built over centuries. The north wing, including the stair tower, seems to be the oldest part. The wing in return, overlooking the street, is dated from 1566 thanks to two cartridges: one door the inscription "Draw with rose, 1566, keep from thorns", while the other, erased, is framed with sirens. These Renaissance elements, such as the pilaster gate and the stone staircase turret, bear witness to this first phase.

In the 17th century, a campaign of work added the south wing, recognizable by its grid of bandages and its mansard roof. A shield bearing the arms of the Danjou family — members of which were treasurers of France and secretaries of Monsieur — overcame the door of the garden. This period also introduces classical elements, such as decorations carved in prominent bands.

The interior preserves traces of the different eras: vaulted rooms on the ground floor, a corridor with service staircase, and above all a room decorated with Louis XV woodwork and landscape-painted mists. The facade on courtyard presents a Renaissance door with carved pilasters, surmounted by coat of arms and currency. The ensemble, classified as Historical Monument in 1961, illustrates the architectural evolution between Renaissance and classical era.

The fence wall on the street, with its Renaissance portal, and the low gallery opened on the courtyard with full hangers, complete this testimony of bourgeois aristocratic habitat. Today, the private property, the hotel is not open to visit, but its state of conservation remains satisfactory according to available sources.

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