Pouzieux seen from above, thanks to www.geoportail.fr.The château is at the top of the big square courtyard in the middle of the picture.
I stopped and took a picture, but we were headed to more picturesque places, including Angles-sur-l'Anglin and St-Savin-sur-Gartempe, so we didn't have time to do more.
The château de Pouzieux, seen from the highway south of Châtillon-sur-Indre (36)Last July, I mentioned this little château to my friend CHM who was visiting, and he was interested in seeing it. We decided to drive down to Châtillon one afternoon and explore a little.
I like the way the rusty sheet-metal is the same color as the château's roof tilesLooking at the www.geoportail.fr site for detailed maps and aerial photos of France, I have just identified the building we saw as a place called le château de Pouzieux.
A close up of Pouzieux's towers and roof tilesIt appears it was built beginning in the 13th century but dates mainly from the 15th. It is privately owned and the château is actually part of a farming operation.
Inside Pouzieux's courtyard there was this old Citroën 2CV van.Parked behind it is a much newer Citroën model. Did you know that
Citroën, now owned by Peugeot, still makes a full line of automobiles?
When CHM and I visited, there wasn't a soul in sight. We drove up to the building, parked the car, and nosed around a little. There were signs saying the courtyard was private property, so we didn't risk going beyond the gates. We took a lot of pictures though.
Speaking of roof tiles, look at this stash stored next to a building near the château.
There must be thousands of 500-year-old buildings like this all over France. They are used for all kinds of purposes and many are never open for public viewing.
They don't build them like they used to! :-)
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm in hog heaven (even though it's duck season). Keep up the pixlogue and monologue! The stash of tiles is too good. -- E
ReplyDeleteGinny, you can say that again. Ça, tu peux le dire !
ReplyDeleteEleanor, those roof tiles get used over and over again over the decades... or centuries. Our neighbors had to have part of their roof repaired. The house is about 200 years old, and the wood slats under the tiles were rotting. The roofers took off all the tiles, stacking them carefully on the ground. They put new wooden slats in to replace the decaying ones. And then they put the old roof tiles back on the roof just like they were. You would never know there was a "new" roof on the house.