
Building Evolution
Before 1730, the house was extended with two return wings on the forecourt, depriving the Saint-Ninien Chapel of part of its forecourt. The north wing has a cellar (which does not connect to that of the main building) and features the same painted ceiling decorations as those on the ground floor of the main building. The angled entrance section avoids a pre-existing opening in the junction with the main building. This angled section is also found in the cellar, placing this articulation device in the period of the north wing’s construction. The south wing has neither a cellar nor painted decoration: it was clearly built at a later stage. The extension of the north wing beyond the footprint of its cellar suggests the north wing was modified when the south wing was built, to harmonise the ensemble.
Since the construction of the two return wings on the forecourt before 1730, the house has changed little in form. However, it has undergone significant losses, depriving it of its interior decoration through successive "renovations". It is likely that the house interiors were not included in the 1975 listing for these same reasons. Nevertheless, sumptuous decorative friezes survive on the high ceiling of the ground floor. During the 20th century, a lean-to connected the rear facade to the domestic quarters. The cellar and bread oven lean-to were demolished, causing the house to lose the axiality of the small central alleyway formed by the gaps between the two forecourt wings on the street side and the outbuildings on the garden side. This slender axis between sea and garden is typologically original.