Sommaire / Summary
The gardens of the villa Ephrussi de Rothschild surround and complement the villa's refined interior. Baroness Beatrice wanted several types of gardens, as elegant as the interior of her palace.
We sometimes read that these gardens are best visited in spring. Mwah.
In our opinion, these gardens are pleasant and interesting at any time of year. Why is that? Because flowering is only of relative importance to the beauty and meaning of these gardens.
See also Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild
The French garden
Baroness Beatrice loved to travel, as we've seen, and especially on her favorite liner, the Île de France. So, she wanted a garden in the shape of a ship's deck from which she could see the sea on either side.
At the far end of the bow stood the Temple of Love. And she even pushed the similarity with a ship to the point of having half a dozen "sailors" "maneuver", dressed as sailors and wearing red pompom berets.
The Florentine garden
The Florentine garden at the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild reflects the codes of Italian gardens: the garden opens up onto its natural surroundings. Plant life (cypress-lined driveways, remarkable trees), minerals (rocks, statues, pottery) and water are all present.
Always in keeping with refinement, at the center of this garden rises a statue by Jean-Baptiste Boyet, representing Zéphyr contrariant les amours d'une rose et d'un papillon.
The Spanish garden
This garden is an adaptation of the Alhambra garden. Indeed, it features many of the canals and arches dear to Islamic symbolism. A dolphin fountain stands in a grotto.
Informations Côte d'Azur
Jean-Marc Foulquier