France. The ideal palace of the postman Ferdinand Cheval. Ferdinand Cheval's Ideal Palace in France Ferdinand Cheval's Ideal Palace

Did you know that you can build a castle from ordinary stones that are scattered on the beaches, on the roads, on the paths? Just collect "pebbles" and build a chic and perfect palace!

Don't believe that this is possible? But the postman Ferdinand Cheval believed it! And not only believed, but also brought to life this wonderful idea! Let's go on another journey right now and see: the impossible is possible?

Where is the ideal palace of Ferdinand Cheval

By the way, what do you associate France with? With the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame Cathedral? Or with the Louvre and the Chateau de Chenonceau? Does the ideal palace of the postman Ferdinand Cheval tell you something? Are you familiar with this interesting and peculiar palace? Have you seen these marvelous walls made of "natural" stone? If not, then let's quickly go and find out all about this "strange" palace!

The ideal palace of Ferdinand Cheval is located in France, in the city of Hauterives, in the Drome department, which is not far from Châteauneuf-de-Galauru.

It would seem, how is it possible to build an amazing and beautiful palace from ordinary stones, not special building stones, but from the most ordinary pebbles lying on the coast! For example, they did not even try to build the Dolmabahche and Jal Mahal palaces in India like that.

The amazingly shaped palace of Ferdinand Cheval has been pleasing both the inhabitants of France and tourists for a generation!

Construction of the palace of the postman Ferdinand Cheval

Probably, in order for such an idea to come to mind, a certain impetus is needed, which would serve as “the embodiment of a strange idea into reality”!

So what kind of impetus did this amazing man Ferdinand Cheval have!? Dream? Book or drawing? Or maybe a bystander? Let's work together to find the answer to our questions!

Back in 1858, when Ferdinand was 32 years old, he and his wife moved to the small village of Hauterive and began working as a postman.

His work was quite hard, because in those days almost no one had personal transport, so Cheval had to overcome tens of kilometers on foot!

“The package has arrived - it needs to be delivered! And how to deliver - the problem of the postman! ”, - they said in those days!

It even happened that Ferdinand had to spend the night in the open, in abandoned closets or destroyed rooms. And in such seclusion, the postman Cheval dreamed of a personal, beautiful and unusual castle. But referring to his position, he understood that the dream would forever remain a dream. However, one day fate played an interesting game with him! Following the usual route, Ferdinand stumbled over a stone, the most ordinary stone, it was this stone that subsequently turned the life of the postman! He took a closer look and saw not a stone, but something unusual, with a wondrous, not like an ordinary stone shape.

From that moment on, Ferdinand understands the truth:

I can't afford to buy building materials, so I will use what nature is rich in

And he begins to collect stones of a strange shape. That is, he did not build yet, he only collected building materials.

After this incident, work for him also became "the road to the dream"!

At that time, he was already delivering mail with a cart, on the way all interesting and marvelous stones instantly fell into it. Cheval's keen eye missed nothing. Many called him an eccentric, and no one understood that they were a genius. Indeed, who and when collected ordinary stones and collected them?

So, slowly and stubbornly over 20 years, Cheval collected all the building material for construction, and already in 1888 the postman began building his castle!

From this moment, Ferdinand begins "fast and hard work." He built his palace without a break and days off. Do you think he slept soundly at night? No matter how! Even at night, by the light of the "kerosene stove", he continued the construction of the dream palace!

And for some 33 years, Ferdinand Cheval finally built his ideal palace!

The architecture of the ideal palace of the postman Cheval

Palace of the postman Cheval was really perfect! This miracle, created from wire, cement and, of course, stones, has collected all styles and trends. Here everything is mixed into a single beautiful picture.

You will not believe, but inside the ideal palace there is even a mosque and a temple. Ferdinand can be given not only the title of a builder, an eccentric, a genius, but also a great architect. After all, only a few will be able to put everything together and even just turn a fantastic idea into reality. He even thought of crypts for his wife and for himself!

Oh, well, the view of this palace is like a picture from a magazine! Unusually, somehow magical, beautiful and majestic, the Ideal Palace looks surrounded by fountains, stairs and all kinds of sculptures!

It is probably safe to say that the last years of Cheval's life were the happiest. After all, the palace convened tourists from all over the world. Everyone was interested to look at this miracle. And Cheval was happy to tell the story of the construction!

Death of postman Ferdinand Cheval

In 1924, the brilliant eccentric architect Ferdinand Cheval died.

Already in 1969, the ideal palace of the postman Cheval officially became a historical monument of France, and Ferdinand Cheval is now called the forerunner of Art brut - rough raw art.

How to get to Cheval's ideal palace

You can enter the palace at any time! For an adult, a ticket will cost 5.5 euros, and for a child - 4 euros!

This place will simply enchant you with its "outlandish" history! And the inscription on the facade: “10,000 days, 93,000 hours, 33 years” will make you believe that thoughts are material and dreams come true, if you believe in them and strive to translate all ideas into reality!

You can't give up on a dream without trying to make it come true!

Susan Jacqueline

The ideal palace of the postman Ferdinand Cheval on the map

In 1836, in a small French town near Lyon, the boy Ferdinand Cheval was born, who will become famous throughout the world as a big eccentric and a strange man who created a unique architectural masterpiece - the Ideal Palace. But first things first. Ferdinand from childhood was distinguished by an unusual character, for which he was often called crazy or crazy. He really was an eccentric - detached, immersed in his thoughts, unfriendly. But Ferdinand was distinguished by enviable perseverance, perseverance and willpower. When Cheval grew up, he chose the most suitable profession for himself as a postman. Every day he had to walk about thirty kilometers, delivering mail in the area where he lived and worked. And this area was surprisingly picturesque - in ancient times the bottom of the sea was located on this territory, after which many stones of an unusual shape remained.

One fine day, during the next campaign with letters and telegrams, Ferdinand saw a very beautiful stone, which immediately attracted his attention. The young man was struck by the perfection of forms, the harmonious appearance and beauty of the stone. It was decided to take it with him, and when the postman delivered all the mail and returned home, he devoted more time to examining the amazing stone. The next day, passing in the same place, Cheval decided to find out if there were still similar stones. It turned out that there were a lot of them - all unusual and interesting. “This is a sign,” Ferdinand thought, and decided to use this wonderful building material to build the perfect castle. He had no knowledge of architecture, but was not going to give up: gradually collecting stones and bringing them home, he studied the architecture of different countries and times in parallel with the main work of the postman. It took Cheval twenty years to collect enough material. By that time, he had already retired, which allowed him more time to devote to his life's work. Neighbors considered him crazy - since childhood, the attitude of those around him has not changed at all. Although it is difficult to judge the locals for this - what a normal person will constantly collect stones near his house for twenty years. But at least Cheval didn't seem dangerous, and the neighbors left him alone.

So, in 1888, Ferdinand Cheval retired and finally began construction. Over the years, he carefully thought everything through: he was inspired by the architecture of the Middle East, China, Algeria, he borrowed a lot from the famous architect Antonio Gaudi. Work on the ideal palace took thirty-three years. Cheval decorated the walls of the castle with the sayings of the prophets, figures, and ornaments. As the palace grew, the attitude of people towards the work of a talented postman changed - it was impossible not to admire the elegant castle, which everyone in the district now admired. Many local residents even volunteered to help Cheval in his difficult task. This is how the Ideal Palace was built - a magnificent work of art, a masterpiece of architecture that incorporates the features of many styles.

Even during the life of Cheval, his creation was called an architectural monument, and in 1969 the Minister of Culture officially announced the status of a historical monument given to the palace of Ferdinand Cheval. This decision was influenced by many prominent cultural figures of the time, including the famous artist Pablo Picasso.

Cheval himself asked to be buried in the palace, but this request was refused. However, the former postman was not very upset and built himself a family crypt in the same style in the cemetery. He was buried there when he died at the age of 88.

Today, the Ideal Palace of Ferdinand Cheval is a famous and popular landmark in France. It can be visited on any day except New Year and Christmas. This most beautiful palace is twenty-six meters long and fourteen wide, but inside there is only one room, which Cheval used as a barn. But from the outside, the view of the castle is amazing - sculptures of people, animals, temples, turrets, fountains, patterns.

Edward Leedskalnin in the USA, in New Zealand, or Charles Jencks in Scotland, these are all examples of the fact that nothing is impossible for people going towards their goals. These lone creators made every effort to translate life ideas into reality. One of these people will be discussed in this article, about the creator Ferdinand Cheval and his brainchild called the Ideal Palace.

To see the Ideal Palace of Ferdinand Cheval, you need to go to the small village of Hauterives, in the French department of Drome. A small settlement of a little more than a hundred people became famous throughout the region thanks to the hard efforts of the local postman. The self-taught architect Cheval, at the age of 31, received a position as a local postman. Walking along his route every day, Ferdinand began to collect stones of an unusual shape that came across along the way. At the same time, he had the idea to create the Ideal Palace with his own hands.

Cheval built the Ideal Palace for 33 years. Every day he traveled more than 20 kilometers, collecting stones of an unusual natural shape, which he used as material for construction. Ferdinand began to build the building at the age of 43, in 1879. Day and night, in his free time, regardless of the weather, with the help of simple building tools, the postman made his dream come true.

It was difficult to build the Ideal Palace without proper education, fantasy alone is not enough. To do this, Ferdinand began to study the architecture of different countries and times. For practical work, he studied the publications of the Parisian magazine Le Magasin pittoresque. Thus, the architecture traces the styles of the Middle East, China, Hindu mythology and the work of the Spanish architect Antonio Gaudi.

The ideal palace was built in 1912 alone, without anyone's help. Ferdinand's mottos and proverbs are carved on the walls of the building, one of which reads: “1879-1912, 10,000 days, 93,000 hours, 33 years of hard work. Whoever thinks he can do better, let him try.” Most of the time, Cheval built the outer wall, which he called the "Temple of Nature" - a symmetrical facade with columns in the form of Egyptian monuments. The Ideal Palace also contains a Hindu temple, animal sculptures and a large terrace 23 meters long.

The dimensions of the structure do not exceed the dimensions of an average house: length - 26 meters, width up to 14 meters, height up to 10 meters, 2 floors. The ideal palace is equipped with many stairs, towers and fountains. Here you can see a mosque, a temple of the Virgin Mary, a chalet, a chateau, sculptures of Egyptian gods, Catholic saints and figures of people. For Europe, the Ideal Palace is a unique architecture. With the help of art lovers, including Pablo Picasso, in September 1969 the building received the official status of a historical monument. And in 1986, a photograph of Ferdinand Cheval was placed on a French postage stamp.

The Palais Idéal Palace, located in the southeast of France, is a unique monument of naive art. The building was built in 33 years - from 1879 to 1912 - by a simple rural postman Ferdinand Cheval. The self-taught architect, making a daily journey of 32 km along the roads of Provence, picked up shells, mollusks and stones of an unusual shape and brought them home. Cheval began to carry out a unique plan to build an ideal palace at the age of 43. The original name of the building is the temple of Nature; it consisted of four walls of different style and decoration, as well as tunnels and a terrace.

The Palais Ideal incorporates elements of many architectural styles, but is closest to the art of outsiders. Here you can see the likeness of Egyptian temples with columns; faces resembling the heads of stone sculptures from Easter Island; palm trees, olive trees and aloe, created from limestone; spiral stairs; details typical of Hindu temples and mosques.

The palace can be considered a monument to stubbornness: having been refused by local authorities in a request to be buried in the Palais Ideal, Cheval turned the family crypt into an amazingly shaped tomb. Having finished the work, the master scratched on the facade of the building the phrase "Plus opiniâtre que moi se mettre à l" oeuvre "(" Let a more stubborn one than me get to work").

The Palais Ideal was declared a historical monument in 1969.

Palais Ideal in Provence // www.facteurcheval.com

Opening hours and cost of visiting

The palace is open daily, except for December 25 and January 1, as well as the period from January 15 to 31. Opening hours - from 9:30 to 17:30 or 19:00, depending on the season. Be careful: the palace closes for lunch from 12:30 to 13:30.

Tickets cost 5.8 euros for adults and 4.1 euros for children from 6 to 16 years old. For students, a visit to the palace will cost 4.8 euros. Audio guide - 2 euros.

Romans-sur-Isere is a 20-minute drive from Hauterives, where you can visit the charming Shoe Museum. If you plan to visit both attractions, ask the palace for a double ticket. It will cost a little cheaper than individual ones: 7.5 euros for adults and 5 euros for children from 7 to 16 years old.

How to get there

The nearest major cities are (81 km) and (77 km). The most convenient way to get to the village of Hauterives is by car. From Grenoble, head northeast on the A48 until you reach the D119. After turning left, continue onto the D119, which merges into the D519 and D73. At the junction of the D73 and D519 turn right and follow the D538 to the village of Hauterives.

From Lyon, drive south on the A7 to the D519 exit. After turning left, continue on the D519 until you turn onto the D131. Turning right, follow the D131 to D53. Then continue on D1; turn right at the fork onto the D121 and continue until the village of Hauterives.

Bus service connects Hauterives with the nearest towns and villages, in particular with Ten-l "Hermitage. It is necessary to check the bus schedule in addition.

The nearest international airport is located in Grenoble, 35 km from the village of Hauterives.

Location

The small village of Hauterives is located in the south, in, 25 km northeast of Ten-l "Hermitage.

November 16th, 2014

“It doesn’t matter how old you are and what you want to achieve in life, if you are brave, persistent and ready to work hard, then success will definitely come to you.”

Ferdinand Cheval

France is one of the most beautiful countries in the world. Having a centuries-old history and culture, the most beautiful royal palaces and castles, cultural and antiquity monuments made by famous architects and builders, which have gained worldwide fame, have been preserved here.

But there is one extraordinarily beautiful amazing Ideal Palace (Le Palais Idéal), which not many have heard and seen, whose architect and builder was a simple postman Ferdinand Chevalier, who became a masterpiece, thanks to the master who, with his idea, fantasy, built an ideal, fantastic, unique a palace that is an example of true amazement and admiration. There is an opinion that only educated outstanding architects and craftsmen can create original masterpieces in art, but this is not always the case. There are people who reject the conventional wisdom that art and architecture are only available to professionals. Seeing the amazing Ideal Palace of Ferdinand Cheval, you can easily refute such an established opinion. Thanks to its history and architecture, the Ideal Palace became world famous during the life of its creator and is considered one of the most impressive monuments of naive architecture in the world.

This is a story about what you need to follow your dream, despite the opinions of others who do not always understand you. In 1879, a French postman let his imagination run wild and began building the palace of his dreams, which he called "Le Palais Idéal" or "Ideal Palace".

Let's look at the palace that he built for 33 years.

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The Ferdinand Cheval Palace or the Ideal Palace (FerdinandChevalPalace, IdealPalace) is located near the city of Lyon, in the small town of Hauterives and is called the “Ideal Palace of the postman Cheval”.

This building has a unique and exceptionally special character. Ferdinand Cheval is both the author and the creator of this most impressive palace of naive architecture in the world.

Joseph Ferdinand Cheval was born on April 19, 1836 in the French town of Charm-sur-Lerbasse. The boy grew up without much interest in learning, so at the age of 13 he left school and joined the service as a baker's assistant. At the age of 32, Ferdinand and his wife moved to the outback - the city of Hauterive and became a rural postman. Conscientiously delivering letters, magazines and picture cards to recipients, on which distant countries flaunted. He himself dreamed of visiting beautiful distant countries, seeing magnificent beautiful palaces. They remained in his heart and imagination for a long time. Delivering letters on foot to addresses, he sometimes had to travel 32 km around the district.

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The idea of ​​​​creating a castle appeared in the head of Ferdinand Cheval on one of the working days, and it was on April 19, 1979, when a rural postman, carrying his mail, daydreaming, stumbled over an amazing stone of an unusual natural shape and was struck by its extraordinary beauty of form. Ferdinand was so shocked by the unusual shape of the stone that he took this find for a divine sign. After carefully considering the discovery of the house, he returned to the same place the next day and began to collect stones. “And then I began to dream of building a palace, a magnificent castle. I didn't tell anyone about my dream because I was afraid that people would start laughing at me. I myself felt ashamed of this idea, ”Cheval wrote in his memoirs.

And he forgot about his dream for many years. However, the will of chance again brought him back to the idea of ​​building a beautiful palace. “Fifteen years later, when I had almost forgotten about my dream, when I didn’t think about it at all, my leg reminded me of it. I tripped on a rock and almost fell. I picked it up. The stone had such an unusual appearance that I put it in my pocket. I wanted to take it with me to admire it in silence,” Cheval wrote.

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“Since nature has endowed me with building material, I must become an architect and a bricklayer,” Ferdinand decided and returned to this place countless times (for 20 years) in the hope of finding the same amazing stones suitable for his plan, and the search for him did not were futile. Every day he collected stones during the day, and in the evening he returned for them. For 33 years he piled stones in his garden. At first, Cheval carried cobblestones in his pockets, then he began to take a basket with him, and, finally, he acquired a wheelbarrow - a stretcher for stones. Now he took her with him to work and delivered letters, at the same time collecting building material. At the same time he studied the architecture of various countries and eras. With great perseverance and desire, he made his dream come true.

Ferdinand Cheval finally began to build his palace, after retiring, after 20 years from the day the first stone was found. With the help of the simplest tools, alone, he made his dream come true - alone he built his fabulous elegant palace. He connected the stones with lime and cement mortar and used wire. As a result, he spent the first two decades only on the construction of the outer wall. And being already retired, he devoted all his free time to a grandiose goal. The construction of the palace was completed by 1912. For a long time, local residents were skeptical about the postman's plan, and considered Ferdinand an eccentric. But the result of his titanic work struck their imagination when they drew attention to the splendor of the palace.

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The walls of the palace outside and inside are decorated with countless ancient inscriptions, mysterious signs, sculptures of gods, fabulous animals and the incredible shape of fountains, chandeliers made of stones and shells, objects, only Ferdinand knew the meaning. But as the legend says, the whole idea of ​​​​building the palace began precisely with the found stone, which still stands on a pedestal. The palace resembles an incredible mixture of all styles and cultures - the Middle East, China, Algeria. Its dimensions are also impressive - 26 meters long, 14 meters wide and up to 10 meters high. On the eastern façade, the data of the palace are indicated: “10,000 days. 93,000 hours. 33 years of struggle, if anyone thinks they can do better, let them try."

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On the walls of the castle are carved sayings by which its creator lived. For instance:

"For a heart burning with desire, nothing is impossible"

"Humanity, remember that you are just dust, only your soul is immortal" ... and many others.

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In the cellars of the palace, Ferdinand built two crypts - for his wife and for himself, as he dreamed of being buried with his brainchild. The only desire of the modest postman, after gaining worldwide fame, was a request to bury him inside his castle, which is typical for original creators, but the French authorities refused, which is also very typical. And then at the age of 78, in a small city cemetery, he turns the family crypt into a work of art, he creates 8 years all alone. Formally, he turned this family crypt of the Cheval family into a continuation of his famous palace. In all his work for 33 years, which he devoted to construction, one can feel the spirit of his obsession, powerful and strong energy.

He died on August 19, 1924 at the age of 88, having outlived almost everyone he loved. This simple postman Cheval, who was considered almost insane, because of his plan, built a beautiful divine palace, which captivates with its unique originality.

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Shortly before his death, he received recognition from the famous surrealists Andre Breton and Pablo Picasso and was called the founder of the art brut style (rough art - French).

The enormous hard work of a simple postman, who devoted 33 years of his life to creating the beautiful palace of his dreams, was crowned with worldwide success. In 1969, under the government of De Gaulle, the Minister of Culture officially announced that Cheval's Ideal Palace was given the status of a historical monument. And later (1975) and the Tomb, were classified by critics as masterpieces of naive architecture and taken under the protection of the state.

Cheval's idea of ​​the world did not contain the concept of borders between countries. The world is united by universal love, these are the main motives for its creation, the bible says everyone should create their own church. He built his church as he felt, saw.

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In recent years, when Cheval's Ideal Castle became a popular destination for tourists, Ferdinand Cheval willingly showed and talked about his creation. Ferdinand Cheval died in 1924 at the age of 88.

Only in 1969, the French Ministry of Culture announced that the Ideal Palace was given the official status of a historical monument. This decision was also facilitated by the efforts of prominent figures of world culture, Pablo Picasso and Andre Breton.

The 1992 film Le Facteur sonne toujours cheval by Chris Marker and the 2008 film The Postman Cheval's Ideal Palace by the Moscow Museum of Outsider Art are dedicated to Cheval.

And this is the official website of the Ideal Palace of the postman Ferdinand Cheval: www.facteurcheval.com. Here you can find out both the opening hours of the Palace and the cost of tickets. By the way, pleasant concerts are also presented here near the walls of the palace, the art of Art brut, to which we can include Cheval.

Location of the Cheval Palace: France, Drome department, the town of Hauterives near Châteauneuf-de-Galaure.

Coordinates: 45° 15′ 23″ N 5° 1′ 43″ E / 45.256309 N 5.028559 N

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The ideal palace of the postman Cheval turned out to be a receptacle for different styles and directions of architecture.

From where Cheval did not borrow elements of his architectural creation. There were also Middle Eastern motifs, and Chinese, and Algerian ones, even the influence of the Spaniard Antonio Gaudi affected. It is no coincidence that the palace was called ideal - it turned out to contain a variety of styles and trends not only in architecture, but also in culture. So, on the walls, Cheval made inscriptions-quotes from Christianity and Buddhism, placed outlandish figures, some of which looked like statues of gods.

It can be said that there was not a single free space left on the surface of the structure of the amateur architect Cheval, everything was filled with stucco, images, sculptures and other decorative elements. It turned out to be something impressive. As a result, in a rather nondescript French town, Cheval's Ideal Palace immediately became a tourist gem, although, at first glance, it looked like a low children's fairy-tale town with stairs and balconies.

The palace, or as it is also called, Ferdinand Cheval's Castle, during the life of the author, who at that time was already well-aged (more than 30 years passed from the moment of retirement to completion of construction) was officially recognized as a masterpiece. By the way, a number of prominent French cultural figures insisted on this, including the already mentioned Pablo Picasso and Andre Breton. In addition, the Ideal Palace of the postman Cheval announced a new art form - art brut (fr., rough art).

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“I knew that people love to ridicule, and even persecute those they do not understand,” Cheval wrote. “I wanted to show what can be achieved with willpower.” His work was enjoyed by Picasso himself, who created several sketches inspired by the view of Cheval's palace.

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