The "Shell House": A Townhouse Blending Symbolism, Artistic Stained Glass, And Historical Secrets

An atypical L-shaped townhouse featuring a symbolist facade adorned with shells; the facade was built in 1906 during the reconstruction of the front section of the building. The original spiral staircase, located in a central tower, was replaced by a straight central staircase at the exact same time the top of the tower was removed.

The main body of the house, which includes spacious upstairs rooms overlooking the garden, was built towards the end of the 18th century, around the time of the French Revolution. Most of the rooms retain their antique woodwork and original doors with period ironwork, as well as, in some cases, their original fireplaces.

The large wood-paneled upstairs room overlooking the street is of additional historical interest due to its remarkable parquet floor with compartments (known as ”Versailles parquet”), originating from a 17th or 18th-century chateau. The windows of this room are adorned with four hand-painted Pre-Raphaelite stained-glass panels (circa 1875)—including two circular female portraits—attributed to Daniel Cottier (1838-1891), originally from Anderston (Glasgow). This designer and illustrator, inspired by the Arts & Crafts movement, influenced the American artist Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933).

The hallway windows feature three stained-glass panels depicting Renaissance-style portraits, sourced from a London house built in 1881. Many walls are decorated with original watercolor designs for Neo-Gothic stained glass.

The large ground-floor dining room overlooking the street, which lacks wood paneling, features as its main decorative element six carved and polychrome-painted friezes of exceptional beauty and quality. Inspired by the Passion of Christ and embellished with richly gilded floral and fruit motifs, they were specially designed for a Neo-Gothic Anglican chapel (circa 1860) located in Somerset, England.

The elongated pleasure garden holds historical value, dating back at least to the beginning of the 19th century. At its far end, it extends into a rich landscape arrangement of trees and shrubs. A remarkable white marble statue from Egypt, depicting the bust of an Eastern philosopher on a pedestal, serves as the garden’s central decorative feature.

Two large palm trees that dominate the garden—likely grown from self-seeded saplings—are over a century old. The larger one, located on the right, is well over a hundred years old, as it already appeared at this size on a 1908 postcard.

The house served as a doctor’s surgery during the last century.
Information on the risks to which this property is exposed is available on the Géorisques website: https://www.georisques.gouv.fr/