Hôtel Pesciolini

Envision yourself transported back to 17th-century Marseille. The year is 1672. A wealthy banker named Hercule Pesciolini, originally from Tuscany, stands proudly before a plot of land near the Récollets Convent. This is where his vision will take shape: the Hôtel Pesciolini. His son-in-law, Amant, purchased the land and commissioned its construction. The Hôtel Pesciolini quickly rose, its construction completed by the end of 1673 or early 1674. The building, located at 1 rue Nationale, at the corner of rue d’Aix, embodies the classic Marseille style. Its south facade, facing Cours Belsunce, features the typical three-window design. The ground floor houses shops and a mezzanine. Two noble floors rise above, topped by an attic on the third floor. The Hôtel Pesciolini’s most striking feature is its wrought-iron balcony on the first floor. It’s supported by two monumental atlantes framing a bull’s-eye window. Below the bull’s-eye, two sphinxes rest back-to-back. Each atlante stands upon a column flanking the entrance. While the overall design might remind you of the stern castles of tall ships, which Pierre Puget worked on at the Toulon arsenal, the actual creator of these atlanates remains unknown. Interestingly, the sculptors seemed to draw inspiration from two atlantes that Puget created for Toulon’s City Hall in 1657. The torsos and arm movements are remarkably similar. The Hôtel Pesciolini has witnessed a parade of owners throughout the centuries. We don’t know if Amant ever lived there, but by 1692, it was rented to Jean-Paul de Foresta. Amant later bequeathed the Hôtel Pesciolini to his daughter, Marie-Anne, who married Jean de Montaud. The property changed hands several times, eventually landing with the Gantel-Guitton family during the French Revolution. In 1794, following the execution of Nicolas Jean Joachim de Gantel-Guitton, the Hôtel Pesciolini was auctioned off and sold to Barthélémy Girard. It was auctioned again in 1806, becoming the property of sugar refiner Jean-Sylvestre Reynard. Then, in 1821, soap maker Jean-Joseph Martin purchased the Hôtel Pesciolini. The story takes a romantic turn. Martin’s daughter, Catherine Joséphine, inherited the hotel in 1836. A widow, she remarried André-Élisée Reynard, who happened to be the son of Jean-Sylvestre Reynard, bringing the property back into the Reynard family. Today, the Hôtel Pesciolini stands as a testament to its rich past, its monumental door and the entire building recognized as historic monuments. As you gaze upon the Hôtel Pesciolini, imagine the stories these walls could tell if they could speak.