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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The hotel of Avèze, also called Hotel Massia de Sallèles, is a 17th century mansion located at 3 rue du Cannau in Montpellier, in the Hérault. Its construction seems to date from around 1650, but an expert from 1695 specifies that it was built after 1678, when Guillaume Massia de Sallèles, treasurer of France, acquired the residence. The first owners identified belonged to families of royal officers, such as the Grilhe and the River.

The hotel's architecture is characterized by a porch leading to an inner courtyard, where an ionic-column peristyle supports an enclosure decorated with stone balusters. The staircase, topped by a dome, has three ramps suspended in ironwork. The ground floor connects the courtyard to the stairwell, marked by gimmicked doric columns and Corinthian pilasters on the first floor. The facade and roof on the courtyard, as well as the stairwell, have been protected since 1943.

The hotel illustrates the prestige of the royal officers and treasurers of France under Louis XIV. Its classical style, mixing ionic and Corinthian orders, reflects the influence of Parisian architectural models in the Languedoc of the seventeenth century. The house, although partially classified, remains a testimony of Montpellieran aristocratic urbanism of the modern era.

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