We have Henri de Bertin to thank for this remarkable construction...

Lord of Chatou from 1762 to 1791, a promoter of the sciences and lover of enlightened art, Henri de Bertin was one of the great men of state at the end of the 18^th century.  When he acquired the estate of Chatou and Montesson in 1762, it was partly to start experimental farming, his intention being to cultivate the potato, a passion for which he shared with Parmentier.  He very quickly transformed the gardens into magnificent examples of ornamental gardening.  He developed a huge vegetable garden, and a vegetable-growing operation watered by a complex irrigation system.  He built a sheep-pen and aviary, and also began restoring the “Old Château”, former residence of the lords of Chatou.

He turned to his friend Soufflot when the problem of water erosion arose in the garden.  Soufflot’s suggestion was to harness the various water flows, bringing them together and channelling the water into an artificial grotto, or Nympheum.  This style of grotto took its inspiration from the Greek and Roman fountains dedicated to nymphs.  Shaped like a large, inverted scallop shell, and supported by eighteen columns encrusted with decorations, it was made from modest materials, such as scoria from forges, which perfectly imitate fancier materials such as marble.  The scallop shell arcs over a pool of identical proportions.  In the centre at the back of the grotto, is a recess richly decorated with shells.

The Nymph which used to reside here but which is now gone, represented Madame de Pompadour, Soufflot and Bertin’s protector.  One of her feet was resting on a shell or an urn which poured forth water.

This creation is now one of the few remaining traces of Bertin’s time as a lord. 
Listed as an historical monument in 1952, and restored in 1969, it is now privately owned.