19th Century Kitchen and Annexes

You enter the 19th-century kitchen and its annexes through the lower mansard part of the Argenson wing on the left side of the central pavilion. Preceded by a vestibule, this part offers an interesting overview of the kitchens of a grand aristocratic castle from the Belle Époque, kitchens that replaced those from the 18th century located on the other side of the castle and were too far from the new dining room. To the left of this vestibule, a butchery was fitted out in the 1900s for the butchering of large game pieces. It is located in an old 18th-century bedroom that has retained its fireplace and overmantel. Its chopping block, with its meat hooks in the center, has also been preserved. The door to the left of the room (which did not exist in the 18th and early 19th centuries) was opened to facilitate access to the returning part of the Argenson wing. At that time, it contained several lodgings and offices, including the village hall and post office of Les Ormes. In the kitchen, a large cast-iron cooker, known as a « piano » and manufactured by Pédrazzi establishments in Châtellerault, is present. It is called so because of white enameled plates separated by cast-iron elements resembling a piano keyboard. It is fueled by wood or coal. The burners have been arranged to accommodate pots or pots of various sizes. To the left, a warming oven kept dishes warm, and below, there are four ovens in which the cooking pieces were arranged according to the heat of the central hearth. These large stoves allowed preparations for several hundred people. After World War I, the reduced needs of the castle led to the installation of a more modest stove in front. To the left of the large stove, a small cold room—supreme luxury in the early 20th century—located under the sink, allowed for brief food preservation. In the room, all the copper elements regularly used in a 19th-20th-century kitchen have been arranged (pots, stewpots, pots, fish kettles, bowls, kettles, warmers, pastry molds, …). Two chopping blocks for cutting meat and poultry have been installed between the windows and to the left. At the back on the left is the room dedicated to dishwashing and cleaning large cooking utensils, including a sink in the form of a washbasin resting on its console base and a draining board on the left side.