The "Mas de la Brune", a listed, Renaissance-style gem, its 4 ha of parklands and its gardens at the foot of the Alpilles mountains in Eygalières - re
The "Mas de la Brune", a listed, Renaissance-style gem, its 4 ha of parklands and its gardens at the foot of the Alpilles mountains in Eygalières.
This property stands in the midst of the mountains and the Alpilles Regional Nature Park, below the rocky outcrop of Eygalières, a village where intellectuals live happily with famous actors, media personalities and the local, lively, working population. Proud of its 2,000 years of history, Eygalières gets its name from the Romans who named it "Aquarelia", meaning "receiving water", and lets passers-by and inhabitants alike enjoy its fountains and the Alpines Canal, an asset more invaluable than ever in the rocky landscape of the Alpilles Mountains.
The village, renowned for its many restaurants, is also proud of its much-appreciated shops, its production of AOC olive oil and its vineyards.
Although it does not have a train station, Eygalières is linked to a good local road network, putting it 30 minutes from Avignon TGV train station, 30 minutes from Arles, 20 minutes from Aix-en-Provence and 40 minutes from Marseille-Marignane airport.
At the end of a row of two-hundred-year-old horse chestnut trees, three interconnected constructions comprise the buildings on this predominantly wooded, 4-ha property.
The first is the Renaissance-style manor house, known as the "Mas de la Brune", constructed in 1572; the only building of this type, standing in the middle of the land, rising up like a nave, proudly showing visitors the prow of its watch-turret.
Directly adjoining the manor, a more recent construction dating from the 18th century stands in the shade of a three-hundred-year-old lime tree. This building once housed the staff accommodation.
And lastly, on the east side, where a perimeter wall no doubt once existed, a rehabilitated farmhouse is separated from the manor by a row of cypress trees. Opening on to a vast courtyard that extends behind the French formal garden, it acts as a link with the rest of the parklands, where the permanent singing of the precious water, coming down from the Alpilles Mountains via the canal of the same name, can be heard.
The French Historic Monument listing, dating from the 9 August 1924, applies solely to the "Mas de la Brune", already showing on Cassini's 18th century map under the name of "Grand Mas". Some say it was constructed for the consul Pierre-Bruno-Isnard, who gave it the feminine version of his surname, whilst others maintain it was for an alchemist, whose name is long forgotten. In both cases, this outstanding building, entirely constructed from Baux stone, was probably built by master mason, Gaston-Flayelle, native of the Vivarais region, who also designed the "Hôtel de Manville" in Les-Baux-de-Provence.
The size of the manor house, its biblical paraphrases sculpted on the façade, like a big open book, and including the secret number of steps of its spiral stairway tend to reinforce the hypothesis of an alchemist's home.
A spacious tiled swimming pool, cleverly concealed from onlookers in a copse of laurel bushes, has been installed a good distance from the main house.
And lastly, a carpark, out of sight of the manor but able to take ten or so cars, has been laid out in the shade of mulberry plane trees.
The manor houseThe main, south-east facing facade has a single row of windows shored with mullions. The low, semi-circular arched entrance is topped with a panel without coats-of-arms. Upstairs, the united pilasters, flanking the windows, features sculptures which transform the facade into a book of hours on which it is possible to read: "MORTEL. VIVANT. PENSE ET CROYE. QUE TA FIN SERA ENFER OU PARADIS SANS FIN.".
However, the most outstanding detail on the facade is a round watch-turret, with corbelling and a richly sculpted cupola, set on a corner of the building like the forecastle of a stone ship. A ...
