Place du Champ Jacquet (Champ-Jacquet Square), Rennes

Perhaps the most photogenic spot in Rennes, Place du Champ-Jacquet takes its names after the gate Porte Jacquet, formerly part of the old (15th-century) bulwark, located nearby.

The triangular square's architecture traces the history of Rennes from as far back as the Middle Ages and bears the scars of the Fire of 1720 that ravaged the city. That year, the flames totally consumed the southern part of the square, while sparing its northern part, thus clearly marking the limits of the fire's advance. Stone houses built after the fire today stand face-to-face with the survived structures of wood and plaster.

These celebrated half-timbered houses form a wicked "house of cards" composition, looking at which unstable and uneven façades is now hard to imagine that, back in the 17th century, when they were built, the opposite was true: the buildings were impressively solid and regular.

These furnished dwellings served as accommodation for lawyers who flocked here to work at the Parliament. The opening of Rue Leperdit (left) created a void that caused the façades to slope. With no stone wall to separate the buildings the latter warped over time – a problem quite typical in wood construction: shifting suppleness of the structure.

In the center of the square stands a two-meter bronze statue of Jean Leperdit, a mayor of Rennes during the turbulent period of the Revolution. The mayor is depicted tearing up a royal edict with a list of those condemned to the guillotine. Praised as a ray of light in the time of darkness, Leperdit was famously reported to have said, whilst ripping that document: "They are outside the law, [but] not outside humanity."

If you look to the side, at number 5, you will see the Hôtel Hay de Tizé. Built in 1665, this is a stunning example of a fusion of genres and materials: a half-timbered façade, a tuffeau-stone first floor and granite foundations. In other words, an architectural cocktail, Breton-style.

Since the installation of the second Metro line, Champ-Jacquet Square has been pedestrianized. Today, the square is a condensation of Rennes' life and is once again a rendezvous place, abundant in restaurants, cafes, and creperies, as well as boutiques specialized in "made in France" merchandise.