Lorient (the East) in Breton, is a tribute to the prestigious past of the city. The name comes from the Soleil d’Orient (Sun of the East), dubbed « L’Orient », that was the first ship built in the shipyard of the French ”Compagnie des Indes Orientales” (Company of the East Indies). It allowed the Bretons to enter the race with the Portuguese, who were the first Westerners to challenge the Arab monopoly on trade with the East, by opening the fabled East India routes – Cape of Good Hope (B Diaz, 1488) and West Indies (V de Gama, 1498). In order to contest the Portuguese monopoly, the English created the first trading companies regulated by charter in 1600, and the Dutch in 1602.

The establishing of the French Companies, “Compagnie de Colbert” (1785-1793), “Perpétuelle des Indes” (1719-1769) and “Compagnie de Calonne” (1785-1793), constitutes a key moment of French history. It led to Lorient becoming the French port of entry for manufactured goods and raw materials with high added value, such as silk, porcelain, spices, tea, coffee, medicinal drugs and exotic wood. The atmosphere and decoration of the room “An Oriant” evoke those distant and exotic destinations: China, India, Vietnam, Japan…