Le jardin des cinq sens (Yvoire)

No medieval garden has survived to our contemporary times. We know it thanks to literature, paintings, illuminations or even thanks to tapestries, but also thanks to the archeology of gardens, which tells us about the dimensions of the plots, as well as the nature of the plantations, the material fences, on the type of decor, etc. At this time, gardens are spaces surrounded by stone walls or plant fences for the purpose of protection against attacks from the outside: war, theft or wild animals. The garden is thus perceived as a place of security, nourishing for the body and a source of rest for the soul. The medieval hortus conclusus is of modest dimensions, with a simple plan; Most of the time, it is a square subdivided by two perpendicular paths into four squares and decorated in its center with a fountain. This simplicity is only apparent because the medieval garden is not devoid of complexity, quite the contrary.in. This place is imbued with strong symbolism, starting with the evocation of the mythical Garden of Eden itself divided into four by the two rivers which irrigate it. In addition, there is for example sage, from the Latin salvia, the plant that saves the soul and the body, there are also orchards planted in cemeteries, thus recalling the unwavering link between life and death but especially the perpetual victory of life. The garden has always been associated with the labyrinth, either because it is designated as a labyrinth or because it contains one. The labyrinth motif was very present in the Middle Ages. It is an ambivalent space, which inspires fear and pleasure, one not existing without the other. It has many symbols: the journey through the labyrinth is an evocation of the path of life; it is also the place of the initiatory journey, strewn with sometimes mortal dangers, which leads to the center of the labyrinth, where the pilgrim accesses religious or philosophical revelation; it is also synonymous with getting lost and surpassing oneself possible thanks to self-awareness through the use of the 5 senses.