Le Figaro Bordeaux
Three weeks after the fire of the town hall of Bordeaux by demonstrators, its charred door is still standing on Place Pey Berland.
A state that cannot last: whatever its future, it must be removed "
as soon as possible
" for its preservation.
“
We are coming to a period when it will undergo thermal amplitudes between day and night temperatures.
It is exposed due east, and it suffers all the more because it is black.
“, explains Delphine Gramaglia.
The heritage architect has been entrusted by the town hall of Bordeaux with the expertise of the damage, the report of which is due in mid-May.
For the moment protected by simple barriers, the entrance to the Rohan Palace, whose facade and peristyle are estimated at 2.9 million euros, is now more than fragile.
"
Each time it is opened and closed, there are little bits that fall out
," says the expert.
Before ensuring: “
As it is and without treatment, we cannot leave it there.
You have to drop it off.
In collaboration with the heritage conservation service of the Regional Department of Cultural Affairs (Drac) of New Aquitaine, an emergency safeguard plan is being drawn up.
Objective: to replace the burnt door with a provisional invoice, if possible as early as May.
She should look like
In addition to permanently sheltering the door with a view to its restoration or exhibition in a museum, this removal must place it out of reach of “
possible tags
” during tense demonstrations which persist in Bordeaux.
The ephemeral pastiche will also make it possible to restore to the town hall "
the essential security of the site
".
If the town hall had indeed reopened
"the common house of Bordeaux
" the next day and that the reception of the public has been maintained without interruption since, the opening on a human scale of charred wood is no longer removable.
A fact that forces the City's security service to adapt, in particular to welcome guests outside opening hours.
Read alsoIs the mayor of Bordeaux required to have the burned door of the town hall rebuilt identically?
First observations
This Sunday will sound the death knell: a month will have passed since the fire at the Palais Rohan.
To date, the two medallions which overhang it, whose moldings are "
less classic
", must still be scanned in 3D for a possible identical reconstruction.
Otherwise, 90% of the door detail readings have been completed.
And the first findings, revealed to
Figaro,
are more serious than imagined.
“
In 20 minutes, we did not expect such a profound alteration of the door.
There was a fairly significant rise in temperature
, ”reveals Delphine Gramaglia.
Could the lithium battery of the electric scooter that was used to light the fire, alongside a pile of trash cans and crates, be the cause?
If it is premature to answer this question with certainty, Maylis Descazeaux, director of the Drac, already admits "
that we cannot scientifically not ask the question of the total replacement
(of the door, editor's note)".
Its side columns, the basement and the electronic system (intercom, surveillance cameras), which have melted, must also be restored.
On the building, it is mainly the stones that have been altered.
But as evidenced by the ancestral know-how of those who carve them and who work on the Saint André cathedral a few meters away, their repair should take place "
without great difficulty
" according to the heritage architect.
