The late 15th-century home Maison de Jeanne is located in Sévérac-le-Château, Aveyron, France. It is believed to be one of the oldest houses in France. The more structurally sound nature of the construction might also be attributed to jettying, which keeps the floor from bending. The building, which dates from 1478, is thought to be Aveyron’s oldest half-timbered home.
It was named for the last known owner of the structure, an artist named Jeanne. The walls of the house were built from cob, while the structure was made of wood. Larger upper stories were intended to overhang a smaller footprint while building the house. The structure’s distinctive appearance results from the upper levels’ bigger dimensions, which make them appear larger than the first floor’s smaller footprint.
The peculiar layout of the structure has been attributed to the tax regulations, which were amplified in the area at the time of construction. The occupied land on the ground floor of a house determined its taxation in Aveyron. It is believed that the upper levels were constructed wider and larger than the bottom floor because the original owner wanted to pay less tax. The several centuries-old structure has two stories, with a vaulted cellar below that holds feed troughs, suggesting that the building’s original owners lived on the bottom level with their animals. The house was originally covered in stone on the outside.
It has not been inhabited in the previous seven decades. After the town of Sévérac bought the home in 1995, plans for restoration and repairs were made. The Maison de Jeanne has been around for 500 years, but it has not risen to some kind of internet fame. Over 1.5 million people viewed the image of the medieval house in only two days after an American tourist shared a photograph posted on the image-sharing website Imgur in 2017.
In July and August, it is possible to take a guided tour of the inside of the structure and observe events and reconstructions that trace its medieval past. The fact that it remained intact after all these years captured the attention of a lot of social media users, and some started making up the story that it was the oldest house in France.
The oldest house in the world must create curiosity in your mind. Therefore, the history of the oldest house in France must encourage you to pay a visit for a lifetime experience. If you’re a true history lover, then don’t miss Maison de Jeanne.
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