Restoration of a medieval church, EXACTLY AS IT WAS!

A year and a half of work to renovate the interior of a church identically, that is the challenge that was launched by the municipality of Chanceaux-sur-Choisille to Florent and Éric, plasterers, staffers, stucco workers at Les Métiers du Plâtre, member of the Entreprises Placo® club.

Discover this major challenge in the video, as the church, dating from the Middle Ages, showed signs of deterioration due to humidity. Plaster coatings were blistering, even detaching, as were the "wood-effect" ceiling beams which were deteriorating at the entrance.

In total, the construction site comprises:

100% of the nave walls and 50% of the vaults, approximately 800 m², were recreated using stucco plaster, as well as the "stones" surrounding the main door.
Cornices, decorations, and beams were restored using plaster.

Techniques performed using Placo® plaster-stucco (Lutèce® 2000 L lightweight plaster and Molda® 3 Normal multipurpose plaster) require genuine expertise and meticulous work. Extraordinary know-how, very rare in France.

The renovation of this church took place in several stages:

Finding the right pigments: about twenty trials were needed to find the perfect shade to imitate tufa using Placo® plasters
Meticulous measurements: the uniqueness of the church's interior decoration lies in the meticulous arrangement of the joined stones.
Chipping and roughing out the supports: by removing the old plaster, layers of ancient paint dating from between the 10th and 14th centuries were discovered.

The Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs (DRAC) has decided to keep this polychromy in the background.

Creating the joints: Eric and Florent used a laser and a ruler to transfer the stone designs using pencil, based on photographic measurements; it's a spectacularly precise piece of work.
Application and sanding: application of a decorative "stone-effect" plaster to the walls and vault

But beyond this incredible renovation, Eric and Florent also demonstrate the importance of preserving this expertise and passing it on to future generations. The work carried out at the Saint-Martin church in Chanceaux-sur-Choisille is a perfect example. Throughout the project, his team welcomed and trained interns and apprentices, as well as a plastering company from Morbihan.

Once you have read all this, you can discover the wonderful result of the renovation of the church of Chanceaux-sur-Choisille carried out by Métiers du Plâtre, a member of the Placo® business club.