Philibert Delorme à l’hôtel d’Angoulême ? Réflexions sur une attribution

Abstract

Philibert Delorme and the Hôtel d’Angoulême ? Reflections on an attribution Documents found recently by Guy-Michel Leproux led him to believe that construction of the Hôtel d’Angoulême, thought to have been built by Diane de France in 1584, began in 1560 and that Philibert Delorme was the architect. That attribution is justified, but the hotel built in 1560 is definitely not the present hotel which is situated on the northern half of the (very large) parcel of land. Philibert’s hotel was erected on the southern half of the plot, with one of its walls bordering the rue de la Porcherie. Diane lived there, and then aroung 1605-1610 she decided for unknown reasons to build the present hotel, which embraced the northern extremity of the previous one. The architectural forms, which recall nothing of the Delorme’s refined art, fit perfectly with that date. The rather mediocre architect (badly) imitated the colossal order of the western part of the Grande galerie.