Carpenters Without Borders at Amboise

The volunteer heritage conservation organisation Charpentiers sans frontiers (Carpenters without borders) has been working on the restoration of the Chapelle Saint Hubert in the grounds of the Chateau Royal d'Amboise. They make up the first phase of a 2.7 million euro, 2 year project to repair the roof. Last Tuesday I was lucky enough to have a long conversation with one of the women carpenters. She has been a professional carpenter for 20 years, working mainly on modern timber framed homes in the UK, but she is passionately interested in building conservation, and this week in Amboise was her annual holiday.

Charpentiers sans frontiers have set up on the terrace near the chapel.

 

The Charpentiers sans frontiers team is 30 people from 7 countries, including France, the US, England and Germany. They are working with traditional tools to hew (that's the correct technical term for working the logs with axes) and saw (with a two man cross cut saw over a pit) 20 oak trees between 60 and 80 years old, donated from the nearby Forest of Amboise so they become beams, base plates and rafters.

The two curved logs on the right will become the base plates for the apse roof.

 

The 19th century spire was added without being adequately fixed to the roof, and this is the main problem being rectified by the carpenters as they rebuild the apse roof. The beautiful spire will be completely rebuilt too, entirely by hand.

All of this work is being undertaken so visitors can view it, and the carpenters are very happy to break off and answer questions. The smell of freshly cut oak pervades the Chateau grounds and is rather nice.

Carpenters consulting.

 

After the carpenters will come lead roofers and decorative finial makers, masons, sculptors and stained glass artisans. 

The chapel is most famous for housing the tomb of Leonardo da Vinci. It was last restored a 140 years ago. The Chateau Royal d'Amboise is owned by the Fondation Saint Louis. The restoration is being 84% funded by the State, as part of the Covid19 Relaunch programme for the tourist industry. 2.5 million euros will go towards the restoration itself, 200 000 euros is earmarked for outreach and heritage conservation education.

This carpenter from England stopped work to talk to me.

 

It is only the third phase of major work ever undertaken on the Chapel. It was built in a single phase at the very beginning of the 16th century, and from then on fell progressively into decline and abandonment. The Royal Apartments which abutted it were demolished in the 19th century. There were two major phases of restoration in the 19th century -- the first under Louis Philippe (the last King of France, 1830 - 1848), the second, at the end of the 19th century, at the instigation of the Count of Paris (a pretender to the French throne).

For the length of the project there will be booths set up in the grounds dedicated to educating the public about all the trades who will be involved. By the time the work is finished, the lead roof will have been given back its gilt highlights, and the bell will once again ring out, after being silent for as long as anyone can remember.