THE 5 TREASURES TO DISCOVER AFTER CONFINEMENT
# 2 Villa Kérylos
As I write these words, summer vacation seems uncertain.
Is your trip to Mykonos canceled? At Athilie we offer you a solution: Greece in France.
We decided to highlight 5 numbers on cult places to visit that combine art, architecture and people through photos, testimonies, videos too little known by the general public.
Here is an invitation to contemplation: The Villa Kérylos in Beaulieu-sur-Mer in the Alpes-Maritimes (06).
Villa Kérylos, Beaulieu-sur-Mer
VILLA KÉRYLOS: THE SWALLOW OF THE SEA
Villa Kérylos is a unique house in France built and furnished between 1902 and 1908 on the model of the villas of ancient Greece and especially on those of the nobles of the Island of Delos (now uninhabited) for the archaeologist and specialist in the Hellenistic period , Théodore Reinach (1860-1928). The Villa Kérylos is not a simple reproduction but a reinterpretation of ancient Greece by Théodore Reinach and Emmanuel Pontremoli . Kérylos means "sea swallow", poetic bird of mythology, which announced a sweet omen. When Théodore Reinach died in 1928, the villa was bequeathed to the I nstitut de France .
Living room of Villa Kérylos
"Is Villa Kérylos the work of a dreamer or the fantasy of a wealthy man?" It was, rather, the realization and accomplishment of what represented for my grandfather the very essence of a civilization with an essentially human face, like that among the Greeks of their gods and their Art. "
Fabrice REINACH
Peristyle of Villa Kérylos
THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE DREAM
The construction and layout of Villa Kérylos lasted five years thanks to the friendship and close collaboration between the Nice architect Emmanuel Pontremoli and Théodore Reinach.
The construction of the villa has two major architectural challenges: on the one hand, the reconstruction of a Greek house. On the other hand, it is a living, functional house which responds positively to the new technologies of its time.
The villa born on the pointe des Fourmis, ideally located between Cap Ferrat and the Rocher de Monaco. At the beginning of the century it was a fishing village which evokes certain landscapes of Greece. The villa is open to the sea, the mountain, the rocky peninsulas and the sun all year round.
Library of Villa Kérylos
"If life in Ancient Greece, its customs, its customs coincided so little with ours, the Greek Spirit is contradictory, neither with life, nor with the habits of our time. "
Emmanuel PONTREMOLI
Peristyle of Villa Kérylos
AN ORIGINAL WORK: GREECE IN FRANCE
For Théodore Reinach and Emmanuel Pontremoli the challenge is not to copy but to create from the Greek model an original work.
The villa perfectly combines ancient luxury and modern comfort. The architect Pontremoli uses precious materials (antique stucco, Carrara marble and exotic wood for the furniture) which makes the decoration sumptuous.
The villa has many mosaics and frescoes inspired, studied and made from famous scenes, illustrating the great legends of the ancient gods.
The villa is organized around the peristyle , a gallery of 12 columns in Carrara marble that surround the interior courtyard. On the ground floor of the villa are the lounges, dining room, library and thermal baths, while the bedrooms and private bathrooms are located upstairs.
Villa Kerylos thermal baths
A HOUSE: FROM TEMPLE TO VILLA
One of the biggest constraints for the architect is to add to the authenticity of his ancient architectural work the necessary amenities: heating, electricity, sanitary, bedding ... so that the villa can be comfortable and habitable.
All of the amenities have been hidden to the maximum of the reconstruction and have been designed with ingenuity, either because invisible, like the heating provided by inlaid openings and hidden by grids on the floor in the mosaic. Either because a Greek touch is kept as for electricity where chandeliers and sconces are inspired by Byzantine mosque lamps or the bulbs integrated directly into the mosaics.
Villa Kérylos bathroom
"I want to pay Théodore Reinach a tribute all the more moved because he was able, in a touching way, to show the price he attached to Kérylos, by instructing the Institut de France to now shelter this house of any infringement. "
Emmanuel PONTREMOLI
Sea view Villa Kérylos
As soon as the confinement ends, meet in this breathtaking Villa Kérylos, Impasse Gustave Eiffel, 06310 Beaulieu-sur-Mer.
As a bonus you will be able to see the old villa of Gustave Eiffel next to Kérylos.
Thanks to Villa Kérylos , the Center des monuments nationaux , Editions du Patrimoine , Institut de France , Le Rêve by Théodore Reinach. Life in Kérylos from its construction in the Museum , Romain Laprade.