The Incredible Palais Ideal Of Postman Ferdinand Cheval

HAUTERIVES, DRÔME - SEPTEMBER 09: French Postman Ferdinand Cheval spent 33 years of his life creating the Palais idéal (Ideal Palace) after stumbling on a stone during his daily delivery round. He had long harboured a dream of building a palace or castle and the stone became its foundation in reality. He continued to collect stones, first in his pockets, then a basket and progressed to a wheelbarrow, working on his palace at night and influenced by pictures from the postcards and magazines he delivered. The Palace has been described as an extraordinary example of naive art and architecture and reflects different architectural styles inspired by Hindusim, Christianity and much more. His work has been admired by such artists as André Breton, Pablo Picasso and Max Ernst. In 1969 the French Minister of Culture André Malraux declared the Palace a cultural landmark to be protected. A biopic is being filmed on the life of the postman by director Nils Tavernier starring Laetitia Casta to be released in late 2018. The site receives over 170,000 visitors a year. Ferdinand Cheval was born in 1836 and died in 1924, one year after his Palace Ideal was completed. (Photo by John van Hasselt/Corbis via Getty Images)