Daniel Russo: Counting for Seeing; Seeing for Counting. The Painted Decorations in the Germolles Chateau from the Period of Philip the Bold and of Margaret of Flanders (end of the 14th century)

The Germolles Chateau, in the Saone et Loire (71), Mellecey district, is one of the some fifty domains that the Duke of Burgundy, Philip the Bold, and the Duchess Margaret of Flanders had at their disposal in the last third of the 14th century, with building still going on for construction or various remodeling. These estates produced significant financial resources that had to be maintained in state, since, in the territorial network of princely residences, they were also the visible signs of the nobility of the dynasty and of its power in the area of the Duchy. Besides the archeological traces still very much present, the documentary series of accounts, in particular that of the ordinary accounts in the bailiwick of Dijon, bear witness to the constant determination on the part of the Duke and of the Duchess to develop a certain number of these residential sites within an overall architectural project and with painted decorations appropriate to the each place. Certain sites, including Germolles, were distinguished among several other places preferred for holidays by the ducal couple: Dijon, Rouvres en Plaine, Argilly, whose building projects were financed by the Chambre des Comptes of the Duchy, conceived by the ``Maitres des oeuvres de monseigneur le duc'' and carried out by the workshops of craftsmen, expert at these tasks. Thus we have chosen to examine the work of the paintings in the Germolles Chateau (fig. 1) carried out during the years 1388-1389 and registered by the accountant of the bailiwick of Dijon in the ordinary accounts (annexe). We insist more precisely on the circumstances of the work of the paintings of the wardrobe in Margaret of Flanders' bedroom (fig. 2), then on the contents of these works before detailing the material used, the quantities necessary and the amounts of the costs. Finally we read these documents for a better perception of the artistic milieu in Dijon and in the surrounding areas in this last third of the 14th century.