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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The house at 10 Place Sainte-Anne in Rennes is an emblematic building of Breton architectural heritage. Built in 1586, it is part of the old district surrounded by the Jacobin convent (founded in 1369), spared by the great fire that ravaged Rennes in 1720. This small mansion, typical of Renaissance wood-paned houses, is distinguished by its four floors and its characteristic gable. Its ground floor is surmounted by a moulded beam, once supported by five carved consoles, only one of which remains to the west today, representing a woman carrying a child and holding a vase.

The upper floors of the house reveal neat decorative elements, such as the consoles on the first floor decorated with fish scales, or the beams on the second floor decorated with palmettes. These artistic details combine medieval influences with Renaissance ornaments, reflecting the stylistic transition of the era. The façade on the square and its roof, including chimney stumps, were protected by an inscription as historic monuments on October 9, 1962, thereby recognizing its heritage value.

This house is part of a set of historic buildings in Place Sainte-Anne, where several other wooden houses from the 16th and 17th centuries are also classified. Its central location, in the heart of Rennes, makes it a valuable testimony to the urban planning and civil architecture of Brittany at the end of the sixteenth century. The preservation of these buildings provides an overview of the day-to-day life and construction techniques of the time, in a neighbourhood that managed to escape the massive destruction suffered by the city later.

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