Art de vivre | Lifestyle
Le domaine des Aubineaux. 1872
Construite en ébène et en colophane, la maison de
la famille Guimbeau, qui l’a habitée jusqu’en 1999,
comprend 28 pièces et 117 fenêtres donnant sur un
jardin de 17 hectares. Fait rare pour une maison
coloniale, elle dispose d’un couloir et de toilettes à
l’intérieur et fut la première à avoir l’électricité !
On peut y admirer des meubles d’époque, des objets
anciens et les portraits des aïeux.
Built in ebony and rosin, home to the Guimbeau
family who lived there until 1999, the house has
28 rooms and 117 windows overlooking a garden
of 17 hectares. Quite unusual for a colonial
mansion, it has a corridor and internal bathrooms,
and it was the first to have electrical power!
You can admire the period furniture, the antiques
and portraits of the Guimbeau family through
the years.
planters are set out for conversation, for
drinking tea and relaxing after a day’s work.
Often circular, these galleries are dressed
with columns and wrought-iron railings in
the style of the colonial dwellings of South
Carolina. Some owners added a canopy that
conferred even more prestige to the house,
and allowed them to welcome their guests
from the top of a flight of steps. The floor,
a mosaic of two-tone tiles, brings a touch
of colour to the building, and glistens in
the play of shadows and shimmering lights,
from dawn till dusk.
The houses are large and spacious, and
usually have two floors. The reception
rooms with their sumptuous floors are
designed to accommodate numerous
guests, and they look out over the gardens,
either formally designed à la française, or
lushly stocked with indigenous plants and
ancient trees. Kitchens and water closets are
usually built away from the main body of
the house.
Each of these grandes dames has a touch of
coquetry about her, for each one has very
much her own identity, with her individual
mix of decorative and multicultural styles
of her time. Gables and turrets may nestle
on the roof; the friezes along the terraces
and on the canopies are picked out with
lacy arabesque patterns; the cornices are
adorned with valances; and the wrought
iron balustrades were obviously a total
delight for the artisans... While bow
windows and winter verandas, inspired
by the English fashion, bring a touch
of folly to the more sober French style.
All the artisanal craftsmen - carpenter,
stonemason, bricklayer, founder,
blacksmith, cabinetmaker, ironworker,
tinsmith – put the best of their skills at the
service of these great – and stylish - ladies.
Unfortunately, most of these houses have
now disappeared, time and finances
having got the better of them. But some
of them still stand, like rare and precious
jewels: Le Domaine des Aubineaux in
Curepipe, le Château de Bel Ombre,
Eureka in Moka, la Maison de Saint
Aubin, le Château de Labourdonnais,
le Château Villebague or la Demeure
Saint Antoine.
Setting off to visit these houses is a poetic
promenade. You can almost hear the
distant murmur of their confidences.
Each has its own secret garden filled with
anecdotes, memories and names that have
marked the history of Mauritius. Some
have been beautifully restored, others
converted into museums. But these last
survivors of a magnificent heritage are
determined to survive, to make their
name last through the years.
Saint-Aubin. 1819
Cette demeure du XIXe siècle est une illustration
des constructions faites par les charpentiers de
marine : une ancienne coque de bateau
est devenue la charpente du grenier et l’escalier
est agencé autour d’un mât. Rénovée en 1990,
Saint-Aubin est devenue une table d’hôtes.
On peut visiter la distillerie de rhum, les serres
d’anthuriums et la maison de la vanille.
This nineteenth century colonial house is an
illustration of the construction by shipwrights:
an old boat hull has become the roof structure
of the attic and the stairs are built round a
mast. Renovated in 1990, Saint-Aubin became a
restaurant. You can also visit the rum distillery, the
anthuriums greenhouses, and the vanilla house.
LUXURY MAURITIUS
112