Old people\'s homes of Beaune

The Old people's homes of Beaune or Hôtel-Dieu of Beaune is an old hospital of the XVe century, become museum today, located at Beaune in Burgundy.

Its foundation by the chancellor Nicolas Rolin goes up with 1443. It is famous, as well by its Burgundian traditional architecture as by its prestigious Burgundian vineyard whose production is sold with the biddings under the name of Vente of the old people's homes of Beaune.

History

Nicolas Rolin, chancellor of the duke of Burgundy Philippe III of Burgundy (Philippe the Good), and his wife Saline Guigone decides to create a hospital for the poor but hesitates one moment over the place between Autun or Beaune. This last city is selected from its and absence crossing point of large religious foundation. Thus the August 4th 1443 is born the Hospital on paper. The Flemish influence is made feel in the city which was in the middle of the Burgundian Flanders (the duchy of Burgundy integrated the Burgundian Netherlands then). January 1st 1452, the hospital accommodates its first patient. Old men, disabled person, orphans, patients, parturients, poor, attend the institution free Moyen-âge at the 20th century.

Rolin obtains creation in 1459 creation about the Sisters of mercy of Beaune whose rule combines a monastic life and with the poor helps it. They lavish the care without slackening and even remain the gasoline, during centuries, Hospital.

Description

The exterior facade, relatively austere, contrast with the richness of the decoration of the central court with its tiled roofs glazed and that of the interior of the building.

Court

Of rectangular form, it comprises a well in Gothic ironwork . It gives seen on the various buildings to the tiled roofs glazed (in fact, out of enamelled terra cotta) characteristic of the Burgundian monuments (the big room is covered simple slates). These tiles have four colors (red, brown, yellow and green) forming geometrical reasons for interlacing. They were rebuilt between 1902 and 1907 by Sauvageot which recreated personal reasons, the original drawings having been lost. The North parts, Is and Western two stages with gallery include/understand, with wood and stone posts at the ground floor to the first, allowing the passage the shelter of the looking after sisters. Many attic windows raise the decorations carved out of wood and ironwork.

Big room of the “Pôvres”

Of imposing size (nearly 50 m of length, 14 m broad and 16 m in height), it is covered with a Charpente monumental apparent and painted, in form of boat careens (reversed). Small carved heads, representing caricatures of the middle-class men beaunois, rythment the spans. The tiling includes/understands the monogram of Rolin and its currency: “Only” in reference to its wife, Guigone Saline.

The room is occupied by two lines of beds to curtains bordering the Southern and Northern walls, the central place being reserved for the tables and the benches for the meals. Furniture was reconstituted in 1875 by the son-in-law of the architect Eugene Purple-the-Duke. Two patients could lie down on each bed.

The vault

It forms integral part of the room of the “pôvres” and was decorated, at the origin of the Polyptyque allotted to the Flemish painter Rogier Van der Weyden. The remainders of Guigone Saline rest there.

The room Holy-Anne

Located at the west, the room of the “pôvres”. It included/understood only four beds

The Saint-Hugues room

Neighbor of the last, it was created in 1645 and includes/understands some beds intended for easier patients. She is remarkable by her murals of Isaac Moillon representative various miracles of the Christ.

The Saint Nicolas's Day room

Located at the North-West of the court, it was intended to the most serious patients and contained 12 beds. It is currently used as showroom d' on the history of the old people's homes and of its vineyard.

Kitchen

Equipped with a vast chimney, it is furnished with various elements of which one turn-stitches automated going back to 1698, called “Lord Bertrand”.

The apothicairie (pharmacy)

It includes/understands two small parts with its racks of bottles and flasks.

The Saint-Louis room

It closes the court in the east and was built in 1661 with the site of a barn

Polyptyque of the Last Judgment

The Old people's homes of Beaune shelter a remarkable work, painted at the 15th century, the “ Polyptyque of the last Judgment ” of the Flemish painter Rogier Van der Weyden, Polyptyque with rectangular mobile shutters, composed at the origin of nine panels of oak with vertical wire painted, including six on the two faces. Probably carried out between 1446 and 1452, this Retable was initially allotted to Jan van Eyck in 1836 before being allotted to Van der Weyden in 1843. The assistance of the workshop is sensitive in the figures of the Ange S and of nine of the Apôtre S. Peint for the Hospital during its construction, it comprises the Armoiries Nicolas Rolin and of Saline Guigone. Placed at the origin on the high altar of the vault of the room of the poor and probably whitewashed to the French revolution. It was redécouvert and restored in 1836, then moved in an appendix of the room Saint-Louis, the unit forever left the place for which it was painted. It was classified the October 10th 1891.

This retable could be closed or open. It measures nearly 2,15 m in height and 5,60 m length. In her opened version, Christ dominates in the center, sitted over the rainbow of Alliance, with the top of the archangel of the judgment. On its line, Saint Jean the Baptist requests. On its left, the Virgin Mary makes in the same way. On the two small higher panels, four Ange S white carry the instruments of the Passion of Christ. The archangel of the Judgment is also surrounded by four angels blowing crimson in their trumpet: men and nude women leave ground. Those located at the right-hand side of Christ move towards the Paradis (panel of extreme left). Those, more, located on the left of Jesus move towards the sufferings of the Enfer (panel of extreme right-hand side).

The closed retable consists of 6 panels representing Nicolas Rolin and Saline Guigone, Saint Sebastien, Saint-Anthony, the Archange Gabriel and the Virgin Mary, the last four in the form of Trompe the eye.

Vineyard and charity sale of the wines of the old people's homes

The Old people's homes of Beaune are owners of a Burgundian wine field thanks to gifts and rich person Burgundian lords heritages of the Moyen-âge since 1471 and at five centuries of management of the inheritance. It currently comprises nearly 60 hectares located in particular in the Côte of Beaune and in the Côte of Nights whose majority of the pieces are located in zones of name first believed and great wines of exceptions. Forty-and-a fermented prestige obtained are sold since 1794 in the form of traditional bidding of charity " with the candle " , third Sunday of November under the name of sale of the old people's homes of Beaune . The result of the sales, which ranges between 1,8 and 5,2 d'€uro million for the best years as well as the gifts, for five centuries, has been devoted entirely to operations charitable and religious of the old old people's homes and the new civil and laic hospital institutions.

The Old people's homes of Beaune, become museum today, were modernized with the Civil hospices of Beaune which to date employ 700 worker and finance:

  • the Philippe Hospital the Good of short stay of Beaune, open in 1971
  • the Center Nicolas Rolin length and average stay
  • Two structures of lodging for dependant elderly: the Hospital and Charity

List godfathers and godmothers of the charity sales to the ten last years biddings

External bond

  • Official site of the old people's homes of Beaune

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