Villa Kérylos, in Beaulieu-sur-Mer – C. Clier / CMN
- Villa Kérylos has been selected to be part of the competition for the “Favorite monument of the French”. The inhabitants of the Paca region have until Friday noon to choose the monument that will represent the region.
- The villa is “unique” in its architectural style which is reminiscent of the houses of ancient Greece. And his furniture too. It was carried out at the same time as the construction.
Until Friday, the inhabitants of Paca can vote for the monument that will represent their region for the competition of Favorite monument of the French, presented on France 3 by Stéphane Bern. In the running to arrive at phase 2, the center of the Vieille Charité in Marseille, the ancient theater of Orange and the Villa Kérylos in Beaulieu-sur-Mer. The latter, symbol of the French Riviera, was imagined by Théodore Reinach who wanted “an original work while thinking Greek”.
“It’s a unique monument,” describes Antide Viand, administrator at the National Monuments Center in charge of the Villa. Under the leadership of the scholar Théodore Reinach, passionate about ancient Greece, the Villa Kérylos will be built between 1902 and 1908 by the architect Emmanuel Pontremoli. The duo is inspired by what was known at the time at the level of the excavations, the writings to build this villa: a house of the 20th century, with the comfort of electricity and heating, in the illusion of Antique ”.
“We can’t find that elsewhere”
What makes the particularity of the monument, more than its particular architecture, are all the details thought out during its construction. “The furniture was designed at the same time as the house,” continues the administrator. The cuffs, the tables, everything has been done for her. You can’t find that anywhere else. All the elements have a coherence because each piece has a meaning and represents a part of the mythology. “
The interior, the exterior, but also the place, on the shores of the Mediterranean, were designed by Théodore Reinach to recreate a Greek atmosphere. “It would be Maupassant who would have evoked this site, with the pines, the olive trees which make one think of the country, indicates Antide Viand. It was also important for the archaeologist to respect this nature and to integrate it into the project. Some pines are also still those who saw the house being built around them. “
A grandiose place of knowledge
On his death, Théodore Reinach donated the villa to the Institut de France. A mission which consists in “continuing to bring this grandiose place of knowledge to life” according to the administrator. “It’s a conservatory, you have to share it and pass it on. Today, we ensure its conservation, we open it to the public and we animate it culturally. Through this villa, we raise awareness about ancient Greece and more generally, the local heritage. ”
He adds: “Villa Kérylos is part of its current era and yet, in this aesthetically and culturally magnificent place, one feels out of time, completely elsewhere. When you are on the terrace and look at the sea, it feels like an Antique in the 2nd century BC. “
An air of the island of Delos on the French Riviera