Repairing the Parquet at Cheverny

The parquet floors of the King's Bedroom and the Armour Room in the Chateau de Cheverny have been lifted in order to repair them. The rooms have been closed to the public and the admission tickets have been discounted for the period of the heritage conservation work. I was lucky enough to be there a day or two after the floors came up and I was able to get some photos.

 

The Armour Room, looking from the landing doorway towards the King's Bedroom, with the fireplace at the end.*

The pattern is known as 'parquet Versailles'. It was created for the Palace of Versailles around 1684 then widely used in grand town houses and chateaux throughout the 18th century.

Many broken joists were discovered when the parquet was lifted, so they will all be repaired. The pieces of parquet were sent to a specialist workshop for restoration, then relaid on the repaired supports. Then they were waxed and polished.

The joists exposed.

Because it was quiet I took the opportunity to talk to Reynaud, the House Manager, about the project. I asked him if all the utilities would be run under the floor to hide them, as would be the case in a National Trust house, for example. His reply surprised me a bit. He said that several decades ago they had a fire caused by a fault in an electrical wire hidden behind some panelling. As a result their policy now is to always have utilities exposed, even if it is a bit ugly, so they are easy to get to and faults are immediately apparent.

The work will be finished sometime between 15 March and 1 April. 

The floor pre-restoration, in the same corner as the photo above.

*At the end of the Armour Room the massive high relief carved and gilded fireplace depicts Mercury and Venus, accompanied by Love, framing a painting by Jean Mosnier of The Death of Adonis.