A Provencal maison de Village (a house in the south of France, which is located in the center of town) has a distinct style. They are at least three stories high, they have long narrow windows with shutters that are painted in traditional colors, such as blue, green, burnt orange-red, gray, lavender… the roofs are tiled in terre cuite tiles and the houses are made of stone.
A maison de village has details that show if the house is upper class or of a simpler class. The fancier the house the more detailed the door, the window ledge and the cornice under the roof tiles are. The the upper class maison de village the doors are of solid walnut or oak wood. Though the simplier homes the doors are painted to match the shutters.
A painting from the museum in Arles, depicting a typical day in a simple working class Provencal village. Note the simple lines of the homes.
Classic yellow with blue gray doors in the Panier in Marseilles.
A rosette door knob usually in the middle of the door. A key is used to open the door and the handle is used merely to push the door open. Most door handles on French doors are used in this way.
Maison de village in Arles, note the detail, you know what that means… The round windows are called, "Bull"s Eye." I love the roundness of the corner of this building in Arles.
A yellow post office box in the center of my town. "La prochaine levee aura lieu…Mardi."
"The next pick up will take place: Tuesday." But that is questionable if you know what I mean.
The older man is wearing a traditional blue workman’s jacket.
Layers upon layers of paint hide the details of this two hundred year old iron door handle.
The base of the tiled roof top’s edging is made of baked clay. (Doesn’t it look like the lace on a petticoat?) Though the edging along the roof is elaborate, the windows are not trimmed, and the sills are flat and plain. Exception to the rule n’est pas! Note: the window sits half way between the thick wall. Therefore there is a ledge on both sides of the window. The windows are about four feet high.
The shops in the center of the village, as well as the cities, have apartments above them. Often the old shops are turned into garages. A sad practicality.
The doors have letter slots to drop the mail.
I wish this was my doorway. Elegant, stone trimmed, amazing outdoor lamps, and wait what is that I notice… shockingly a door handle has been added! What’s up with that!
A double delight, rosette and Fatima’s hand.
An intricate hook for a shutter. When the shutter’s are pulled closed (and they are every evening) they are locked from the inside.
Talk about blue in your face!
Patchwork.
Art Nouveau style, note the long fingers of this classic hand knocker. If you look at the other ones the fingers are small and round, they are older.
The beauty of a hand-cut iron lock and handle, from the 18th century.
A diamond shaped iron cut-out is standard fare for a lock cover.
A French door key, most keys are like this.
The lock part for the shutter’s hook.
An 18th century window hinge.
I won’t end this with a knock knock joke, but if you would like you may add one!
Photos: Mostly from my village in the south of France. If there is something you would like to see in my village please let me know. I am working on the requests made earlier on French Style.
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