CHÂTEAU DE MALVIRADE

Summer is the perfect time to discover private properties that are inaccessible the rest of the year. Such is the case with this château, where the owner, Joël Cuvillier, recounts several centuries of history. Originally, the château had only one tower, built on the orders of Eleanor of Aquitaine. The rest of the buildings were erected or renovated in the second half of the ^15th century. A century later, Malvirade became one of Henry de Navarre's residences. In the ^17th century, a wing of the château was transformed and formal gardens were added. The tour takes you into a guardroom with a remarkable original painted ceiling, dating from the early French Renaissance (1520). The paintings, darkened by the centuries, have been restored to their original splendor and Lombardy style. They feature characters from Greek mythology, including Oedipus, Perseus and Medusa, Heracles facing the Nemean lion and Cerberus the three-headed dog. The beams also feature bouquets of flowers and hunting scenes, a bucolic evocation of the nobleman's activities in the game-filled forests of Gascony. The vases painted on the beams all contain 9 tulips, in reference to the 9 daughters of Proteus, and particularly the one named Tulip. This Renaissance wing also houses a small theater where shows are sometimes staged. From the formal gardens, a pleasant view of the surrounding countryside. A guided tour of the grounds is available by registration only.