Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The House Sermu is a neo-classical summer residence built at the end of the eighteenth century for Marie de Calonne, the first cousin of Charles Alexandre de Calonne, Minister of Finance of Louis XVI. Located on a plateau on the edge of a cliff, it overlooks the Benedictine abbey of Baume-les-Missieurs, nestled at the bottom of a Jurassian circus. Its architecture includes remarkable landscape elements, such as a stone basin surrounded by a horse-drawn iron staircase, a cave decorated with tufa concretions, and two gazebos offering views of the Tufs waterfall and the abbey.

The central portico with colonnade, surmounted by a triangular pediment, opens onto a rotunda vestibule, reflecting the influence of neo-classical cannons. The park, designed to highlight the natural landscapes of the remote, includes an oratory overlooking the garden, highlighting the relationship between the home and its religious and geological environment. The house, classified as a Historical Monument in 2023, illustrates the aristocratic art of living at the end of the Old Regime, mixing architectural aesthetics and landscape integration.

The building, located at 14 rue de Calonne, is representative of the secondary residences built by the provincial elite, seeking to combine comfort, prestige and contemplation of picturesque sites. Its recent inscription (2023) reflects the recognition of its heritage interest, both for its architecture and for its dialogue with the Jurasian landscape, marked by remoteness and tuf formations.

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