A renovated 15th-century manor, with an outbuilding and 1.5-hectare grounds, located near the birthplace of Ronsard in the Loir River Valley - ref 262
A renovated 15th-century manor, with an outbuilding and 1.5-hectare grounds, located near the birthplace of Ronsard in the Loir River Valley.
Located in the Loir-et-Cher department, within the Centre-Val de Loire region, the property is about ten kilometres away from two small historic towns, while the surrounding villages include many shops and services. In addition, the mild climate is perfect for the production of wines, including the Protected Designation of Origin Coteaux-du-loir or Jasnières appellations. As for the capital, it is 210 kilometres away, while the high-speed rail stations in Vendôme, Le Mans and Tours are 30 and 50 kilometres away, respectively, and the Tours-Val de Loire airport is 40 kilometres away.
Dating from the Renaissance, the property, neither a national or regional historical monument, is currently located in a protected area and originally formed a hamlet with the surrounding enclosed properties. From a small country lane, a drive leads to one of the property's five separate entrances. Once past the main entrance, there is a small pavilion, which was converted into a guesthouse, followed by the two-storey, rectangular manor house. Originally from the 15th century, its central building is topped with a local tile gable roof and punctuated by tall cross-windows.
Flanked on one side by a stairway tower with a modillion frieze and a slate roof, on the manor's other gable end, stands a more modest one-storey building topped with an ancient tile roof. With plaster-coated walls, the manor is decorated with an ashlar stone cornice under the eaves as well as tuffeau stone window and door surrounds. In addition, the frames for the house's single- or double-glazed cross-windows have all been replaced and are safeguarded by interior shutters.
Behind the house, 14 cellars have been hollowed out of the hillside, some of which once contained mushroom beds of varying depths. According to local legend, they also once communicated with the nearby Possonnière manor house where Pierre de Ronsard was born. Lastly, the property's grounds also include a formal garden, an Italian-inspired garden, a landscaped garden, pinewoods, a dry riverbed and a pasture.
The Manor House
The ground floor
With a floor area of approximately 86 m², the ground floor's interior layout was modified about ten years ago. Located in the stairway tower, the entrance hall opens onto a large dual-aspect living room with a monumental fireplace in tuffeau stone. As the room's focal point, its column-shaped legs are richly decorated and its lintel is carved with the Ronsard family coat of arms, while the room's exposed ceiling beams match perfectly with its large Burgundy stone floor tiles. Two vaulted passageways, clad in ashlar stone, lead, on one side, to a study, while, the other, provides access to a space, in which a dining area could be created, open towards both the living room as well as the outside. Behind a door is the dual-aspect kitchen, which is also accessible from the study via a wooden door. With its amenities and appliances on one side and a breakfast nook on the other near another Renaissance-style fireplace decorated with mascarons, the kitchen also has a door that provides access to the small adjoining building, which is used as a mudroom. With numerous storage spaces, outdoor access and Poncé-sur-Loir ceramic floor tiles, this building also contains an adjacent shower room with lavatory.
The first floor
Accessible via a wooden staircase in the entrance hall, this level has a floor area of approximately 67 m². A central hallway provides access to three spacious bedrooms as well as a bathroom with a bathtub, shower and lavatory. With either thick carpeted or painted hardwood floors, this level is warm and cosy with walls clad in either wood panelling, wall fabric or bookshelves.
The ...
