"Samten Dzong", house of Alexandra David-Néel in Digne-les-Bains
House located in Digne-les-Bains (Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur/Alpes-de-Haute-Provence), it was labeled "Maison des Illustres" in 2011
EXEMPLIFIES HIM
Alexandra David-Néel (1868-1969) , née Louise Eugénie Alexandrine Marie David, is an explorer, orientalist, tibetologist, author of 27 books including «Voyage d'une Parisienne à Lhassa». Its name is inseparable from the research conducted in Tibet, China and India in the early 20th century. The first woman to enter Lhasa in 1924 but also in the Tibetan hermitages, she is also the one who brought the Buddha’s thought to the West, demonstrating its modernity and possible adaptation.
She lived for thirty years in her house in «Samten Dzong», absorbed by her writing and research work. It bequeaths to the city a large part of its property: property, archives, collections and copyright.
The Alexandra David-Neel House allows visitors to visit both its living space – the writer’s fully restored villa – and its garden, as well as the museum that traces its history, its commitments and its travels.
THE HOUSE
"Samten Dzong" (Residence of the Reflection), as Alexandra David-Neel names it as soon as it is acquired, is the only home she has owned throughout her centennial life. This house, which she financed for purchase in 1928 by the sole product of her work as a woman of letter, is as much a place of life as of writing; it is here that she writes a large part of her works. Alexandra David-Neel has also been creative in designing the expansion plans and choosing all the materials for her construction, from carpentry to wallpaper colours. Her villa is a work in its own right, a story she tells.
The museum Dedicated to his life, his travels and his work, it makes it possible to make the author better known. While walking with her, the visitor will go to meet a younger Alexandra already determined in the paths she has chosen. The lesser known aspects of his life are revealed, unpublished documents (photographs, correspondence...) and objects brought back from travels, illustrate his life journey, from childhood to his last great stay in Asia.
After days of work that are often tiring, Alexandra David-Neel enjoys long meditative walks around her home. The original land, to which she was particularly attached, could not be preserved following the successive sale of plots during her lifetime. Trees planted by Alexandra David-Neel herself still stand there, like some cypresses and the linden tree at the entrance.
In 1955, on the death of her adopted son, Alexandra wanted her name to remain associated with the garden he was caring for. Today it is done; the Yongden garden consists of a rose garden and a vegetable garden.
STATUS
Property of the City of Digne-les-Bains. Listed in the inventory of historical monuments. Labelled Museum of France.
PUBLIC ACCESS
Schedules :
Every day except Monday from April 1 to November 30, from 10 am to 6 pm; from December 1 to March 31, from 2 pm to 5 pm (closed between Christmas and New Year); last entrance 45 minutes before closing.
Rates and accessibility on the website.
The site is partially accessible to people with reduced mobility.
CULTURAL AND EDUCATIONAL PROVISION
Text under development
Samten Dzong - Alexandra David-Néel House
27, avenue du Maréchal Juin
04000 Digne-les-Bains
Contact: 04 92 31 32 38
messaging: maison.adn@dignelesbains.fr ; site: www.alexandra-david-neel.fr
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