I've wanted to see this place for ages, and it didn't disappoint.
The scale of the building is incredible, and typically flamboyant as with French architecture of the period. The most impressive portion of the building is the double height glass roof affair, which we believe was the drawing office. From that a vast corridor leads to a number of offices and an ornate foyer.
The upper floors seem to again have been offices and document storage. The top floor is lined with beautifully made shelves, and each room is partitioned off with well proportioned glazed panels. Everything here is well made, from curved woodwork in the doors, enormous brass finger plates, molded plaster and of course, decorative iron work.
I had a bit of a rummage in the loft spaces, put off slightly by the fact it was 30 odd degrees up there and my shirt was stuck to my back. I did however happen across a very rotten folder containing a selection of documents from the work's time under the control of "Reichswerke Hermann Goring" which was the company formed by the Nazis to unify the industries in their captured countries. Worth a google if you have never heard of it. Despite not being able to read German past Ich Bin Dweeb I was exited to see eagles clutching swastikas and "Heil Hitler" at the bottom of the typed letters!
There is a lot of other paperwork knocking around, some of it quite a vintage. I really wish I had tried harder in French as a lad now. So remember kids - when you sit there thinking "what the hell do I need to know French for"... So you can read the epic you pull out of it's century long hidey hole, that's why!
I have purposely left out that old typewriter and scabby chair that seems to be what most reports from this place revolve around!
We assume this was the drawing office owing to the natural light provided by the glass ceiling
I loved the subtle curve in the woodwork in the door.
The glass ceiling is in fact the floor of the upper floor's corridor. Set with hundreds of round glass blocks.
The upper floor was ringed by this little loft, which had a fair bit of old tat knocking around. I did find another typewriter, but left it buried for fear of seeing that same old shot from here in 'sterio'
The clock face which is in the center of the facade.
Iron lift with wrap around staircase, totally original and unadulterated.
The ceilings in these offices were cavernous. It must have been a hell of a job keeping all that wood polished!
The main entrance foyer.
The front facade is festooned with carvings of gear wheels, vices and chains. We took some decent snaps on Ojay's phone which hopefully he will add on for me.
