The More Things Stay the Same

When I was in San Fran, I picked up a copy of the latest The Magazine Antiques. That copper cookware (rows of it!) caught my eye and piqued my interest. The corresponding article is about château de Montgeoffroy, one of the best preserved of France's 18th century châteaux. Built in the 1770s by the marquis de Contades, it was one of the few châteaux to survive the Revolution. And amazingly enough, the château has remained in the same family since it was built with the current marquis de Contades and his wife residing there today.

So how well preserved is it? Much of the original furniture has survived and remains in the same rooms where it was placed in the 1770s. There are numerous late 18th c. chairs that were products of the Gourdin workshop, while commodes from cabinetmaker Pierre Garnier (1725-1800) are dotted throughout the house. And up until recently, much of the furniture wore its original fabric, cotton chintzes hand printed in India. The fabric has now been replaced by comparable Pierre Frey prints.

Funny enough, I felt that I had seen the kitchen before. Alas, I had, in my 1963 copy of Decoration . As you can see, little in the kitchen has changed. And you know, that's a very good thing.

château de Montgeoffroy



The Grand Salon



A bedroom with a lit á la duchesse.



A bedroom with reproduction Braquenie fabric.



Yet another charming bedroom.



The beautiful kitchen with that glorious cookware.



The kitchen as it appeared in 1963.

(All color images from The Magazine Antiques, Sept/Oct 2010, article by Joan DeJean, Daniel Kessler photographer. Last image from "Decoration", Pierre Levallois.)