Caverne Sculptée

La Cave aux Sculptures

Useful Information

Location:	7 rue de la Caverne, 49700 Dénezé-sous-Doué. Near Dénézé sous Doué, 30 km from Angers. (47.2469374, -0.2767252)
Open:	10-APR to 20-SEP Fri, Sat, Sun, Hol 14-18. [2026]
Fee:	Adults EUR 6.50, Children (6-) EUR 5.50, Children (0-5) free, Students EUR 5.50, Disabled EUR 5.50. [2026]
Classification:	Rock Mine
Light:	Electric Light
Dimension:
Guided tours:
Photography:
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Caverne Sculptée, 7 rue de la Caverne, 49700 Dénezé-sous-Doué, Tel: +33-241-591540. Actions Caverne, Chez Gaëlle Chardon, "La Roche" 49350 St Georges des sept voies. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

16th century	built.
1956	rediscovered.
1969	listed in the Inventaire Supplémentaire des Monuments Historiques (Supplementary Inventory of Historic Monuments).
1973	becomes the property of the municipality which opened it to the public.

Description

This Caverne Sculptée (Carved Cave), also kn own as La Cave aux Sculptures (The Sculpture Cellar) is exactly what the name says: a cavern of sculptures carved into the tufa. The walls and ceiling are covered with fascinating sculptures, grotesque and sometimes obscene. The reason why and by whom these sculptures were created is unknown. The age is also unclear, but it may have been during the 16th century. Later, at an unknown date, the entrance to the cellar collapsed and thus protected the artworks. It was finally rediscovered in 1956.

There are 234 complete or partial figures identified. Hundreds of fragments detached from the walls remain to be restored. It is likely that other sculpted rooms are still buried under the embankments. The figures form a sort of gigantic sculpted comic strip. Grimacing figures and angelic faces, sumptuous costumes and naked bodies, deformed giants and puny creatures can be seen. Some were made without regard for proportions, probably caricatures. Some of the sculptures have dates on them, 1648, 1633, 1634 and, on a sculpted head, a very uncertain 1740.