Consulting an official report of 1675 recording the state of La Roche Musset, it states: "To the north of the eastern courtyard, a superb rock in which the kitchens have been built and where there are a well, lodgings for a tenant farmer, a stable, a cowshed, storage spaces, a wine cellar and a press. At the northeast corner of the courtyard is a barn partly built into the rock, the front of which forms a protruding roof with a single slope."

This description perfectly matches the present state of the place. Such caves or cellars are typical of the region, dug into the cliff-side running parallel to the Loire. Their specific configuration here played a significant part in the history of the Manoir de la Roche Musset. Originally, there was a trogolodytic dwelling in the cliff-face. The caves went on to serve as a shelter for "gents d’armes" ("armed people", i.e. guards) ensuring travellers’ protection on the road from Tours to Langeais.

Thanks to their exceptional dimensions and facilities (notably a seven-metre-wide fireplace, dug from the rock), they are very much worth a visit. As to the 51 pigeon holes hewn into the cliff-face, they date back to the 16th century. The manor’s owners, who are great collectors, have turned one of the caves into a cabinet of curiosities, in the Renaissance spirit.