Bordeaux: the burned door of the town hall temporarily replaced by a trompe-l'oeil

Le Figaro Bordeaux

A month and a half after the alert launched in the columns of Le Figaro by Delphine Gramaglia, the heritage architect in charge of diagnosing the burned door of the town hall of Bordeaux, his recommendations are about to be followed on Thursday. Facing east, subject to the winds and thermal amplitudes of spring, moreover black because charred, this part of history is suffering. "Every time the door is opened and closed, there are little bits that fall off," analyzed the expert.

The problem will be solved soon. The door will indeed be well removed and kept "in the premises of a company of restoration of ancient monuments and carpentry, where it will be the subject of additional investigations," officially communicates the town hall of Bordeaux, this Wednesday.

This removal operation, which is expected to last two days, will begin Thursday at 9 a.m. and end at 17 p.m. on Friday. The task promises to be delicate. The elements of the peristyle - estimated at three million euros - were also damaged by the fire. The City already announces it with certainty: "some parts of this stone frame will have to be removed, restored or replaced" during the work that will begin in the fall.

See alsoThe mayor of Bordeaux is he required to rebuild identically the burned door of the city hall?

A temporary door in trompe-l'oeil

While waiting for the Rohan Palace to regain the splendor of its former finery, a provisional bill providing the town hall with "safe, secure and functional access" is about to be installed. It will be positioned slightly behind the original due to the vulnerability of certain elements of the façade. And according to information from Le Figaro, it should take the appearance of a thick wooden door, of similar proportions, on which will be affixed a trompe-l'oeil of the original moldings - in order to meet the minimum quality requirements due to a place of "reception and representation".

Delivered mid-May to the Drac and the town hall of Bordeaux, the expert report commissioned from Delphine Gramaglia must be presented "soon" by Pierre Hurmic. In April, these first analyzes concluded to "a profound alteration" unexpected. Burned by opponents of the pension reform, on March 23, the peristyle had been in flames for about twenty minutes.