Chateau Day

Monday was Chateau day. It was also the day that we provided dinner, so we had to tour and get back to serve.

Given that we had shown Debbie and Bill some chateau remnants in Clisson, we thought that we would share Chateau de Chenonceau. Situated on the river Cher, the chateau is old (duh) and was gifted by Henri II to his mistress, Diane de Poitiers. His wife, Catherine de Medici, was none too happy. When Henri II was killed in a tournament, Catherine threw Diane out of Chenonceau (well, she got her to find another place to live) and Catherine ruled France as Regent from the Chateau.

It is one of my favorite chateau. The shot below was borrowed from the website above. The rest are Dan's.

Diane had the bridge built onto the chateau but, not to be outdone, Catherine had rooms built on top of the bridge.

Many of the chateaux have incredible tapestries on the walls. The detail is amazing. From BelleFrance.com:

In Europe there was a boom in tapestry weaving between the 14^th and 18^th centuries. This was a period when heavy, elaborate wall coverings were commissioned by the nobility to adorn the interiors of their residences, which were invariably spartan by modern standards.

These tapestries had various benefits, keeping draughts at bay, insulating cold rooms, adding decoration and providing thought provoking images to contemplate. And, being extraordinarily costly, they were a useful signal of one’s immense wealth. Henry VIII reputedly had 2,000 tapestries and, in keeping with the times, tapestries were considered portable items that were rolled up and transported between residences.

This gadget above was used to turn the rotisserie.

The two carvings above were on huge armoires.

The River Cher

We have carvings similar to those above in our own homes. Doesn't everyone?

Diane's chastity lock.
(Not really)

The three photos above are of ceilings. It gives me vertigo just to think about working on them. No blown ceilings in this place!

A typical Dan shot (above)

(Dan: there is no typical Dan shot. I shoot everything, hoping to find a few really good shots in the mix.)

The photos below are of the Queen's Apothecary.

The two images below were carvings on pieces of furniture outside of the apothecary.

So. After Chenonceau, we went on a hunt for lunch. Unfortunately, we were too late for much to be open, so we grabbed things from a grocery store and ate on a park bench. Then we drove to Villandry.