Lost and Found: The Missing Flamboyant Gothic Door from the Château de Varaignes
In the late 1920s, the Flamboyant Gothic portal that had graced the Château de Varaignes since the late Middle Ages was sold after the château itself had fallen into disrepair. The townspeople of Varaignes did not know what had become of the door although it was rumored it had been sent to the Unite...
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Société de Langues et de Littératures Médiévales d'Oc et d'Oil
2020-01-01
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| Series: | Perspectives Médiévales |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/peme/21255 |
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| author | Martha Easton |
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| author_sort | Martha Easton |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In the late 1920s, the Flamboyant Gothic portal that had graced the Château de Varaignes since the late Middle Ages was sold after the château itself had fallen into disrepair. The townspeople of Varaignes did not know what had become of the door although it was rumored it had been sent to the United States. In 2014, a group of researchers from Varaignes discovered that the door had ended up at Hammond Castle, constructed between 1926 and 1929 in Gloucester, Massachusetts. It was one of the many pieces of architectural salvage from Europe collected by the scientist and inventor John Hays Hammond Jr. and installed in the revivalist medieval-style castle that served as both his home and his laboratory. In following the journey of the Varaignes portal, this paper will discuss the acquisition of architectural elements from Europe by American collectors in the early twentieth century as both a form of philanthropic intervention, but also as cultural imperialism. The Château de Varaignes, now a museum dedicated to the region’s history, particularly textile production, is raising funds to replicate the door in its original location. Just as Hammond used the original Gothic door to evoke the past and lend authenticity to his revivalist castle, the replicated door in Varaignes will serve as a powerful reminder of the lost original. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ae4752d86d1a4a7d85ab3800c0df6d4b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2262-5534 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2020-01-01 |
| publisher | Société de Langues et de Littératures Médiévales d'Oc et d'Oil |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Perspectives Médiévales |
| spelling | doaj-art-ae4752d86d1a4a7d85ab3800c0df6d4b2025-01-13T15:29:43ZengSociété de Langues et de Littératures Médiévales d'Oc et d'OilPerspectives Médiévales2262-55342020-01-014110.4000/peme.21255Lost and Found: The Missing Flamboyant Gothic Door from the Château de VaraignesMartha EastonIn the late 1920s, the Flamboyant Gothic portal that had graced the Château de Varaignes since the late Middle Ages was sold after the château itself had fallen into disrepair. The townspeople of Varaignes did not know what had become of the door although it was rumored it had been sent to the United States. In 2014, a group of researchers from Varaignes discovered that the door had ended up at Hammond Castle, constructed between 1926 and 1929 in Gloucester, Massachusetts. It was one of the many pieces of architectural salvage from Europe collected by the scientist and inventor John Hays Hammond Jr. and installed in the revivalist medieval-style castle that served as both his home and his laboratory. In following the journey of the Varaignes portal, this paper will discuss the acquisition of architectural elements from Europe by American collectors in the early twentieth century as both a form of philanthropic intervention, but also as cultural imperialism. The Château de Varaignes, now a museum dedicated to the region’s history, particularly textile production, is raising funds to replicate the door in its original location. Just as Hammond used the original Gothic door to evoke the past and lend authenticity to his revivalist castle, the replicated door in Varaignes will serve as a powerful reminder of the lost original.https://journals.openedition.org/peme/21255medievalismcollectionfrescoreconstructionart tradechâteau of Varaignes |
| spellingShingle | Martha Easton Lost and Found: The Missing Flamboyant Gothic Door from the Château de Varaignes Perspectives Médiévales medievalism collection fresco reconstruction art trade château of Varaignes |
| title | Lost and Found: The Missing Flamboyant Gothic Door from the Château de Varaignes |
| title_full | Lost and Found: The Missing Flamboyant Gothic Door from the Château de Varaignes |
| title_fullStr | Lost and Found: The Missing Flamboyant Gothic Door from the Château de Varaignes |
| title_full_unstemmed | Lost and Found: The Missing Flamboyant Gothic Door from the Château de Varaignes |
| title_short | Lost and Found: The Missing Flamboyant Gothic Door from the Château de Varaignes |
| title_sort | lost and found the missing flamboyant gothic door from the chateau de varaignes |
| topic | medievalism collection fresco reconstruction art trade château of Varaignes |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/peme/21255 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT marthaeaston lostandfoundthemissingflamboyantgothicdoorfromthechateaudevaraignes |