the work of only one manJoseph Ferdinand Cheval (1836 – 19 August 1924), was a French postman (facteur in French) who spent 33 years of his life building an "Ideal Palace" (in French Palais Idéal) which is regarded as an extraordinary example of naïve art architecture. Ferdinand Cheval lived in Châteauneuf-de-Galaure, in the Drôme département of France. He had left school at the age of 13 to become a baker's apprentice but eventually became a postman. He wasn't a mason and not an architect
He was forty-three years old when he started the foundation of the "Ideal Palace", in 1879. Working alone for thirty-three years, he built a fairy-tale palace. Really, he was a remarkable men!
He was also a poet and his writings are chiseled all over the tunnels, sculptures and facades of the Palace. In the tunnel he wrote:
"In creating this rock, I wanted to prove what the will can do."
Ideal Palace in the village of Hauterives, in the Rhône Valley, France. Photo by Wikipedia
A four-sided castle made from concrete, lime and wire, located in Hauterives, France
Photo by Claude Travels
Photo by Claude Travels
Photo by Claude Travels
Facade East, photo by Wikipedia
Photo by imageshack
Details facade Nort. Photo by Wikipedia
Photo by Claude Travels
The miniature buildings on the west facade, including a Hindu Temple, Swiss Chalet, Maison Carree in Algiers and a medieval chateau. Photo by Kristen Fiori.
Photo by Claude Travels
left: The three giants of the east facade. Photo by Gerard Therin
right: Terrace tower on the south end. Photo by Kristin Fiori
The east facade, with the three giants on the left and the Egyptian monument on the right. Photo by Kristin Fiori.
right: The Arabian mosque on the west side.
The sign over the door says, "Entrance to an imaginary palace." Photo by Kristin Fiori.
left: he wrote:
"the work of only one man"CLICK ON IMAGE BLEU TO SEE THE CLIP...!