Écouen (Val-d’Oise). Palmettes, foliage, winged cherubs, antique bucranes… As the Château d’Écouen finds a clean and restored facade, the decor becomes more readable, full of small details. A welcome restoration, and above all essential, since no intervention had been carried out for more than fifty years. “It was necessary to remedy the disorders observed at the court level”supports Thierry Crépin-Leblond, the director of the castle, adding that this work “are part of a long-term movement for the overall restoration of the entire castle”. Two first restoration campaigns were undertaken, from 2011 to 2015, to restore the exterior facades and the paving of the courtyard. The Operator of Cultural Heritage and Real Estate Projects (OPPIC), which is responsible for the project management, this time managed 9.7 million euros to carry out a third, which concerns the facades and roofs on the courtyard side.
Since September 2023, the project has been progressing: the restoration of the south wing was completed last year, that of the west wing has just been completed, and that of the north wing has just begun. A final, less heavy section will focus on the entrance wing built in the 19th century, bringing the work to end at the end of 2026. There are cracks, small falls, certain parts particularly weakened by bad weather. We are therefore carrying out significant work to restore the sculptures, joinery, frames, roofs, etc. Each time, the challenge is to manage the interface between the museum and the construction site.”points out architect Régis Martin, project manager. Because during the work, the National Museum of the Renaissance – of which the castle is the headquarters – remains open to the public. Thirty rooms out of thirty-six can still be visited, the rest serving as storage space. Boxes were therefore installed in front of the windows to protect the interior, and some fragile works were moved because of the risk of vibration.
“This project also provides very strong knowledge of the castle, its architecture, its evolution”underlines Thierry Crépin-Leblond. Built between 1539 and 1555, the building is an architectural masterpiece, combining French style and Italian influence. The architects Jean Goujon (c. 1510-1567) and Jean Bullant (c. 1515-1578) modernized the facades, introducing antique elements. On the south wing, the cleaned marbles once again bring out the golden inscriptions, until now erased, bearing the motto of the constable Anne de Montmorency (1493-1567). The original polychromy has also been restored. On the north wing side, the Degaine company (Vinci Construction) is working on cutting the stones. Restorers are working on their cleaning, their possible replacement, and that of cement with lime. The gutters are clad in lead, the dormer windows consolidated, the decorative elements restored or reconstituted. Certain finely crafted remains, deposited because they were too fragile, will eventually become part of the museum’s collections.
A little-known museum
It was under the leadership of André Malraux, then Minister of Cultural Affairs, that the National Renaissance Museum was established at the Château d’Écouen in 1977. The core of its collections: works from after the Middle Ages until now kept at the Cluny Museum. In a princely interior, a prestigious collection of 3,000 works is displayed, combining furniture, goldwork, ceramics, tapestries, but also large painted enamels and leather hangings. However, far from the fame of other castle sites, Écouen remains very discreet. “Our attendance is around 50,000 visitors, which is very low compared to the interest in the collection, regrets Guillaume Fonkenell, curator at the museum. The difficulty is that the castle is both too close to Paris and too far from Paris. » Less than twenty kilometers from the capital, the trip hardly seems like a long journey, while remaining long for a Parisian public (who must take the Transilien then a bus). It is also difficult to attract walkers strolling through the 19 hectare estate, often unaware of the national character of the museum’s collections.
