Here’s a real nugget of our heritage that you absolutely must see for yourself. Located in Burgundy, not far from Vézelay and Fontenay Abbey, Château de Maulnes is the perfect complement to your weekend getaway in Burgundy.
Château de Maulnes, a giant Rubik’s Cube from the XVIᵉ century
Ever been challenged to solve the famous Rubik’s Cube puzzle? Are you the type to say “finger up your nose” and give up after 3 or 4 minutes? Well, now imagine that same puzzle with 17-metre sides.
The shape of the castle itself represents a real challenge. For example, how do you design rectangular rooms (with right angles) in a building that doesn’t have any? Yes, the Château de Maulnes impresses with its pentagonal structure and resolutely modern appearance, despite the fact that it was built almost 500 years ago.
But the château also stands out for the monumental spiral staircase at its center, which revolves around a well, adding complexity to the symmetry of the floor plans and the construction of the spaces. In short, the château is a 5-storey labyrinth that continues to fascinate architects the world over.
Mysterious castle, unknown architect…
To add myth to the legend of this castle, which was already full of it, we still don’t know who its architect is. Historians of the XXᵉ century tore their hair out trying to discover who was behind such a feat. It had to be a great master of the time to have displayed such architectural mastery. Several names of Italian and French architects have been put forward, without ever achieving unanimity. In any case, the mystery remains, much to our delight…
And what about Artificial Intelligence?
So we asked ChatGPT to draw us a “Renaissance castle in the shape of a pentagon”. Even if the result is stunning, we prefer the one that continues to fascinate us, 500 years after the pencil strokes of a mysterious character with a well-shaped head.