Timeline

Heritage classified

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Origin and history

La Demeure Chamoncel, also known as Maison François I, is an emblematic building of Saint-Étienne, in the Loire department. It consists of two distinct parts: a wood-paned façade dating back to the 15th century, and an extension of coalstone sandstone and stone-cut stone added in the 16th century by Étienne Columbus, owner in 1515. The set includes a spiral staircase, box ceilings with fern motifs typical of the area, and an inner courtyard connecting the buildings. An engraved beam from the year 1547, the year of the death of King Francis I, inspired the current name of the house.

The house changes owners over the centuries, from local notables before the Revolution to merchants and artisans who set up their activities on the ground floor, while the floors accommodate rented rooms, especially to immigrants. Ranked a historic monument in 1998 after first inscription in 1949, it was acquired by the city of Saint-Étienne in 1994. A long program of restoration and archaeological studies precedes its opening in 2021 as the House of Heritage and Letters, dedicated to the history and architecture of St.

Architecturally, the house illustrates a transition between Gothic and Renaissance styles, visible in its external medallions, its caissoned ceilings dated 1547, and its monumental fireplace with Gothic mouldings. Built in coal sandstone, it bears witness to Saint-Étienne's urban development in the 16th century. Concomitant to an older wood-paned house, it forms with neighbouring buildings a representative ensemble of the evolution of the building in this neighborhood, the historic core of the city. Its plan includes a covered driveway leading to an inner courtyard, where a Gothic window house completes the whole.

The house is associated with several prominent owners, including Claude Chamoncel, quoted in a 1582 will, and Barthélemy Noir in the 18th century. In the 19th and 20th centuries, it houses various shops, such as a butcher shop with cold rooms at the back in the 1970s. Its final ranking in 1998 covers the main house, the courtyard and the back house. Today, as a communal property, it serves as a centre of interpretation to enhance local heritage, within the framework of the label City of Art and History.

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