Timeline

Heritage classified

Origin and history

The building at 24 bis rue des Gras in Clermont-Ferrand houses a remarkable medieval vestige: a Gothic cellar dating back to the Middle Ages. This monument, classified among the Historical Monuments since 1986, illustrates the urbanization of the city at this time. Its complex plan, organized on two levels, reveals a sophisticated civil architecture for the time. The first room, arched, serves as a vestibule and gives access to a two-volved staircase perpendicular, topped by a carved cap representing an elephant head.

The cellar is distinguished by its architectural details, like a trilobed arch connecting the upper part of the staircase to the rest of the underground space. A narrow passage leads to a second room, larger, composed of four vaulted bays. These vaults rest on carved caps, decorated with various motifs (animal heads, geometric shapes), themselves supported by pilasters. A well, located west of the passage, completes this whole, highlighting the ingenuity of medieval urban developments.

The listing of these cellars in the inventory of Historic Monuments in 1986 (Decree of 1 July) attests to their heritage value. Their state of conservation and stylistic features – vaults, sculptures, spatial organization – make this a valuable testimony of urban life in Clermont-Ferrand in the Middle Ages. The location, although considered poor in accuracy (note 5/10), remains identified thanks to the exact address and GPS coordinates available.

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