Clergy courtyard of Hôtel-Dieu, Cloister in Lyon, France
The Cloître de l'Hôtel-Dieu is a large cloister set within a former hospital in central Lyon, featuring an open courtyard surrounded by covered walkways supported by columns. At the center stands a stone cross dated 1813, flanked by two tall magnolia trees and circular paths edged with boxwood shrubs.
The oldest section of the Hôtel-Dieu was built between 1637 and 1655 on the foundations of a medieval hospital dating back to the 12th century. The building welcomed patients until 2011, then closed for several years before reopening in April 2018 after major renovation work.
The courtyard still carries the name of one of its main benefactors, Antoine Charial, whose medallion is visible on one of the columns. Next to it, another medallion portrays François Rabelais, the writer and physician who once worked at the Hôtel-Dieu.
The cloister can be reached from the Place de l'Hôpital, and there is also a back entrance via a corridor leading to the Saint Louis and Saint Henri courtyards. A visit pairs well with the International Gastronomy Center, which now occupies part of the same building.
A quote by François Rabelais is carved onto a small chest in the garden, a detail that many visitors walk past without noticing. It is one of the few visible traces connecting the writer and physician directly to this place.
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