Timeline

Origin and history

The house at 65 Beaurepaire Street in Angers is an example of late medieval civil architecture built between the 2nd half of the 15th century and the 1st half of the 16th century. It is distinguished by its deep structure, served by a lateral corridor leading to a central staircase, whose position seems to be original. The street façade and the adjoining walls of the upper floors are made of wood, while the rear façade, overlooking the courtyard, is made of shale masonry, with the exception of the 2nd floor, also made of wood covered with slate. The basement reveals two levels: a vaulted bottom in a full-circle cradle (in a tuft fitted) and a top perceived as a lost space, whose low height (1.20 m to 1.50 m) could correspond to the embankment of the street during the reconstruction of the house in the late Middle Ages.

The building is based on older substructures, perhaps dated from the 12th century, as suggested by a door in the middle of the courtyard, interpreted as a medieval bay use. In the 19th century (2nd half), important works changed the staircase (reconstructed to identical), the skylights (street and courtyard), and transformed a window on the 1st floor into a window with balcony. A modern carved figure adorns the right horn post on the ground floor. An independent house in the courtyard, served by a common corridor with 67 rue Beaurepaire, was still visible on the 1970 cadastre. A restoration was in progress in 1989. The house has been listed as a Historic Monument since 1963 for its facade and roof.

The spatial organization of this house reflects the medieval urban constraints: narrow plot, optimization of space via a lateral corridor, and superposition of functions (housing, storage, circulation). The mixture of materials (pan of wood, shale, tuffeau) and traces of successive changes illustrate a continuous adaptation to architectural needs and standards, from the Middle Ages to the contemporary era. The 1963 classification underlines its heritage value, especially for its medieval elements preserved despite subsequent transformations.

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