Château du Bois Orcan

Noyal-sur-Vilaine, France

Château du Bois Orcan dates from the 15th century. It has been returned to its original splendour following a full restoration. The rooms house an important collection of furniture and medieval objects that bear witness to the way of life in the era of Charles VIII and Anne of Bretagne. Close to the castle moat is the Jardin de la Fontaine de Vie: this is a garden of medieval proportions created by Alain Richert. The place’s unusually beauty is manifested in its three-part composition – the Cour d’amour (Court of Love), the Fontaine de Vie (Fountain of Life) and the Jardin de curiosités (Garden of Curiosities) – all of them places of olfactory and visual delight. The Bois Orcan also presents the Athanor, a mecca for the work of the internationally renowned French sculptor Etienne Martin (1913-1995).

References:

Brittany Tourism

Address

Le Bois Orcan, Noyal-sur-Vilaine, France

See all sites in Noyal-sur-Vilaine

Details

Founded: 1490
Category: Castles and fortifications in France

More Information

www.brittanytourism.com
www.bois-orcan.com

Rating

4.1/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby

Château de Châteaugiron (1,7 km)

Château de Fougères (38,8 km)
Rennes Cathedral (14,4 km)
Notre-Dame en Saint-Melaine Church (13,9 km)
Notre-Dame Church (22,6 km)
Château de Vitré (22,3 km)
Dol Cathedral (57,3 km)
Brittany American Cemetery and Memorial (52,6 km)
Château de Châteaubriant (39,6 km)
Château de Combourg (42,5 km)

User Reviews

Peter Jewhow (4 years ago)
Very pretty place

Sylvie Lopes (4 years ago)
Lamentable when we arrive and the castle has been closed for 2 years for work and no information is put on the site and we come from the French Riviera ?

Joel Gourlez De Lamotte (4 years ago)
End of renaissance .... A must see.

Gilles Audoubert (5 years ago)
Magnificent place. Interrupted visits, cause covid.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Photo from Flickr, copyright Zvonimir Hrvoj

Historic Site of the week

Church of St Donatus

The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.

The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.

The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.