Chateau de Chambord, the largest chateau in France's Loire Valley, is a study in both grandeur and excess.
It took nearly 30 years to construct the building, which features 440 rooms, 365 fireplaces, 84 staircases and a 1,200-horse stable — but the king who built it, Francois I, spent only about six weeks here whilst on a series of brief hunting trips.
Leonardo da Vinci is said to have designed the chateau's innovative double helix staircase, in which two sets of steps spiral up to the higher floors without ever meeting each other. Rumour has it that the king's mistresses would use one staircase while the queen would use the other.
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