A civil servant collects stones for 33 years and builds a palace.

Ferdinand Cheval’s Palais Ideal

3/22/13

Located within the town of Hauterives, France is a monumental sculpture of a building known as the Palais Ideal (and the FerdinandChevalPalace and the Postman Cheval’s IdealPalace). It’s a strange bit of architecture built by the hands of a civil servant over the course of one-third of his life. While once people may have thought Cheval insane for his obsession, now the palace stands as a cultural landmark.

Born in 1836 and living almost 90 years, Cheval was little more than a postman his entire life. Yet still he managed to spend 33 years constructing his strange project. As the story goes, Cheval tripped on a stone while walking his miles-long route and, upon looking at the unique shape of the stone, became inspired. He then began to collect stones whenever he was out on the job. At first he would fill his pockets, then a basket and then, by the end of it, he was bringing a wheelbarrow with him. He took those stones home and used them, along with a little bit of cement and mortar, to construct the Palais Ideal.

Cheval was not an architect in any sense of the word. Indeed, he had almost no education to speak of. He was just a man with an idea that remained persistent and the end result is this unique creation. It is not the most symmetrical or expertly crafted, but it is filled with inspiration. One can see the obvious Hindu influences in the building, along with some Egyptian design. The western portion of the building contains a façade that features a collection of architectural styles from all around the world.

Cheval was hoping to be buried in his handmade palace when he died, but laws were in place to prevent this. So after the palace was done, he went ahead and built a mausoleum as well, in the same style and using stones. His body lies there today.

Public access to the palace is available almost every day of the year, so if you happen to be in the region it’s easy to stop by and have a look at it. If you wish to know more about the Palais Ideal or check out some more photos, then head on over to their official website.