An eighteenth-century architectural floor plan by Gabriel Huquier, detailing the first-floor layout of the residence of Léon Berthous in Bayonne.

This architectural print by Gabriel Huquier provides a technical floor plan of the first floor of the residence belonging to Léon Berthous in Bayonne. As a prominent French engraver and art dealer during the eighteenth century, Huquier was instrumental in the dissemination of Rococo design through his prints. This specific work documents the spatial arrangement of a domestic interior, typical of the period's focus on functional yet refined living spaces.

The plan illustrates a series of interconnected rooms, each labelled with its designated purpose. The layout includes an antichambre, a salon, a chambre d'assemblée, a chambre à coucher, a cabinet, and a salle à manger. The drawing employs standard architectural conventions, using hatched lines to denote the thickness of the walls and clear geometric shapes to define the proportions of each chamber. The inclusion of a scale bar at the bottom, measured in toises, allows for an accurate understanding of the physical dimensions of the house.

Visually, the print is characterised by its clarity and precision. The lines are clean and deliberate, reflecting the technical requirements of architectural documentation. The composition is strictly two-dimensional, prioritising the legibility of the floor plan over decorative flourishes. The labels are written in a clear, legible script, typical of the period's cartographic and architectural publications. This piece offers a glimpse into the domestic architecture of mid-eighteenth-century France, providing insight into how space was organised and categorised in the homes of the affluent. It is a document of both historical and architectural interest, capturing the structural logic of a private residence through the lens of a master engraver.