An old house with two separate dwellings, with a 19th century pavilion and private riverbank 10 minutes from Fontainebleau, in a famous village on the
An old house with two separate dwellings, with a 19th century pavilion and private riverbank 10 minutes from Fontainebleau, in a famous village on the banks of the River Seine.
This property is located in a historical village on the banks of the River Seine in the midst of the forest. In the 18th century, the village built up a winemaking reputation in France and abroad thanks to its golden Chasselas grapes that were much appreciated by the royal and imperial courts in France, Great Britain and Russia. It also is artistically well renowned. In the 19th-century, it attracted painters, writers, musicians and sculptors seeking the peace and quiet of nature. Many of them were just passing through, but the famous animal painter Rosa Bonheur made it her home. She set up her easel and canvas in the grounds of her mansion where she painted a life study of a couple of tamed lions. The village has a TER regional rail network station, convenience stores as well as nursery and primary schools. The Porte d'Orléans in Paris and its nearby road junctions is 70 km away, while the Gare de Lyon railway station can be reached in only 45 minutes by train.
With the arrival of the Paris to Fontainebleau railway in 1849, the Seine Valley became a destination for relaxation appreciated by the Parisian bourgeoisie and artists. The property is very much in keeping with traditional villas on the banks of the Seine, which have a terraced garden overlooking the river and a pavilion.
It can be reached by a small, peaceful cul-de-sac, bordered with elegant bourgeois residences. It is fifteen minutes on foot from the village's listed historical monument church and is made up of two rectangular buildings. The main house, which is the oldest, dates from the 18th century and stands opposite the street behind which the River Seine flows. The 19th-century second house stands perpendicular to the first. In between them, there is a cobbled courtyard separated from the street by finely crafted wrought iron railings. The buildings walls are covered with light-coloured rendering and punctuated by many windows fitted with celadon green louvred shutters. Opposite, on the other side of the street, there is a small rectangular garden overlooking the River Seine, supported by stone buttresses. Its limits are discretely marked out by old wrought iron railings and it plays host to a period pavilion. To the right of the garden, a small metal gate opens onto a mossy flight of steps adorned with bellflowers that leads to a grassy private riverbank not accessible to walkers and whose gradient is lessened by a stone buttress wall.
The main houseIt is oriented north to south, looks toward the River Seine, has four storeys each with living space of approximately 150 m² and possesses four vertical rows of windows. The gabled roof made of old flat tiles is punctuated with hipped dormers and skylights. A central stone flight of steps protected by an awning leads to the raised ground floor and the main entrance, through a period wooden door with a glazed fanlight window.
The ground floor
The entrance opens into a hall where an old wooden staircase climbs up to the various floors. To the left there is a cloakroom and to the right there is an office, with a fireplace and built-in period cupboards, followed by a utility room and a boiler room. Behind the cloakroom there is a large bathroom and a lavatory. The floors on this level are all paved with period hexagonal terracotta tiles, except for the bathroom and office, in which there is straight wood stripped flooring.
The first floor
This level is made up of a vast room arranged into several different spaces. Thanks to the room's dual aspect, it is bathed in light. Four large windows boast remarkable views of the River Seine, almost inviting it inside. The room is harmoniously divided into ...
