Abbaye Sainte Marie de Pierredon

A 13th-century abbey set in the beautiful landscape of the Alpilles, a chapel, a magical place to live.

The first task of Lafourcade Architecture, specialists in restoring traditional Provençal dwellings, was to transform the entrance to the Abbaye de Pierredon. An unpaved road was constructed, skirting the property from the south, winding westwards and finishing in the north. The view thus obtained is extraordinary, recapturing the vision of our distant ancestors. The chapel, centrepiece of the Abbey, regained its old magic.

The works carried out by Lafourcade Architecture were on a vast scale: there were 2000 square metres of buildings to be renovated and the refurbishment called on the skills of experienced craftspeople: cabinet-makers, wrought-iron workers, stonemasons.
Inside, the challenge was to find the right location for a spacious and comfortable drawing-room. Originally the house had consisted of a succession of small rooms, which is traditional in old Provençal dwellings. On the ground floor, the hexagonal terracotta floor tiles were replaced with Beaucaire white stone tiling. Upstairs, magnificent oak floors were laid to replace the badly damaged wooden flooring. In the main stairwell, a stylish wrought-iron lattice added height and presence to the balustrade without detracting from its antique charm.