Hôtel Pourcheresse de Fraisans

Hôtel Pourcheresse de Fraisans stands at 67 Grande Rue in Besançon, an 18th-century townhouse in the Saint-Pierre quarter that once belonged to one of the city's wealthiest industrial families.

Who built the mansion, and when?

Construction began around 1739 on a plot that had previously held the house of the sculptor Hugues-Melchior Morand. Jacques-François Pourcheresse bought the land in 1728. His family owed its fortune to the ironworks at Fraisans in the Jura, and in 1758 it was raised to the nobility as the marquisate of Pourcheresse de Fraisans. The design is sometimes attributed to the architect Nicolas Nicole, though the sources treat that attribution as uncertain rather than confirmed.

Why is there naval imagery inside?

Jacques-François Pourcheresse spent part of his career at sea rather than in the family forges: he served as a naval guard at Brest in 1732, was promoted to ensign, and became a lieutenant de vaisseau in 1748. That naval background explains one of the building's most distinctive features - the wrought-iron balustrade of the grand open-cage staircase is worked with ship's anchors.

What survives in the courtyard?

On the first floor, overlooking the first courtyard, a wrought-iron balcony decorated with arabesque scrollwork has survived the building's later alterations. At its centre sits the Pourcheresse de Fraisans coat of arms: three boars' heads, topped by a crown and flanked by two greyhounds - a rare decorative detail to find intact on a private townhouse of this age.

What happened to the building afterwards?

In 1769 the property was sold to Désiré Richardot, lord of Choisey and president of the chambre des comptes of Besançon. The 20th century was less kind to it: the street-facing façade was rebuilt early in the century, and much of the original layout was lost. What remains today is the street-front logis, the open-cage staircase, the façade of the main building, and its left wing in the first courtyard.

Can visitors go inside?

No - the Hôtel Pourcheresse de Fraisans is privately owned, and the interior is not open on a regular basis. What travellers can do is view the façade from Grande Rue itself, the main historic axis running through Besançon's old town inside the loop of the Doubs river (the "boucle bisontine"). The building occasionally features on themed walking tours of the city's hôtels particuliers, and some courtyards in the district are opened to the public during the annual Journées du Patrimoine.

Why stop here rather than elsewhere on Grande Rue?

Grande Rue is lined with well over a dozen 17th- and 18th-century townhouses built for Besançon's parliamentary and industrial elite, so a single façade can easily blend into the row. What sets the Pourcheresse de Fraisans apart is that its founding family's story is well documented, and two specific decorative details - the anchor motifs and the boar's-head coat of arms - survive together on the same building, which is unusual. For visitors more interested in the city's merchant and industrial history than in its best-known landmarks, like the citadel or the cathedral, this address is worth the short detour.

Frequently asked questions

Where exactly is the Hôtel Pourcheresse de Fraisans? At 67 Grande Rue in Besançon, in the historic Saint-Pierre quarter within the old town.

Is it open to the public? No, it is a private building. Visitors can view the street façade; some courtyards nearby open briefly during the Journées du Patrimoine.

Where does the building's name come from? From the Pourcheresse family, owners of the ironworks at Fraisans in the Jura, ennobled in 1758 as marquis de Pourcheresse de Fraisans.

What is the most notable architectural detail? The open-cage staircase with its wrought-iron anchor motifs, and the courtyard balcony bearing the family's coat of arms - three crowned boars' heads flanked by two greyhounds.