The Fountain Walk - Tourisme

Tour of the fountains of
The fountains:
Pernes les Fontaines
A 200 mètres
de Villeneuve
de la Rue des Prieurs
Lavoir Saint Gilles
Font dou lavadou
Dou Caire de Roubino
de la Lune
de la porte aiguière
du Quai de Verdun
de la Rue Raspail
saint Pierre
de la Rue Victor Hugo
du Planet de Guidan
de l’Hôpital
de la Place de Brancas
Reboul
du Portail Neuf
de la Rue de Brancas
de la rue des Istres
des Augustins (ou des Dauphins)
de la place de la Mairie
du Cormoran
des Pénitents Noirs
du petit jardin
Lavoir du Cormoran
de la Rue de la République
d u jardin de la mairie
(ou de l’Ange)
de la Place Fléchier
du Gigot
du Cours de la République
de la Rue des Tourelles
Du jardin Dominique Corti
du Cours Frizet
du Monument Giraud
Lavoir des Coudoulets
About
4 kilometers
away from
that point
de l’Avenue Paul de Vivie
du Clos de Verdun
Tourist
Office
de la Place des Comtes
de Toulouse
i
de la Prato
du Couchadou
du Bourg Merdeux
The city’s art locations
Art galleries, exhibitions
and craftsman galleries
a La Galerie de l’R du Cormoran
(Comtemporary art)
b Watch-making workshop
c L’Atelier 43 (Painter’s worshop)
d La Galerie Trace (Modern art)
e La Chapelle des pénitents
Town Hall
Post
Office
(temporary art exhibitions)
f
g L’Atelier Courtepointe
P Car park
(traditional «boutis» making and
exhibition of traditional «boutis»)
Restaurant/snack bar
Public conveniences
conception et réalisation
Cash dispenser
La Maison des artistes
(the painters’ house, a place
where an exhibition and
a demonstration of paintings
are open to the public)
Tour n°1: 1h
Tour n°2: 2h30
h Jeweller/ Jewellery sale
i
G
alerie des Abattoirst
j
Terre de contraste (ceramists)
Pernes-les-Fontaines, former capital of the Comtat-Venaissin.
Go and discover its heritage…
M
I
A little history of the fountains...
Like in many villages of Provence, the fountains are integral
part of the life of Pernes and this is the reason why the town
became Pernes-Les-Fontaines in 1936. It’s the discovery of
the St Roch spring that allowed the locals to bring the water
in every neighbourhood of the town, keeping them away from
drought issues. To celebrate this event, four monumental
fountains were built: La Fontaine du Cormoran, la Fontaine
du Gigot, la Fontaine Reboul and la Fontaine de l’Hôpital.
As a consequence, there are no less than forty public fountains
today and about sixty private ones hidden from visitors
in the numerous courtyards and patios of private mansions
and in other pretty private properties.
Go and discover them… keep your eyes peeled and
your ears alert, the sound of water will be your guide!
Its monuments:
A L a Maison du Costume Comtadin (19th century): This store, closed
in the fifties has kept its furniture, its shelves and its old shop window.
Today, it houses the comtadin costume museum. The shelves in the store
are full of quilted blankets, remnants of old fabrics, sewing equipment,
embroidery, shirts, headgears and hats. An exhibition room located on
the first floor of the museum houses a remarkable collection of authentic
Comtadin costumes and several accessories from that time period.
B Hôtel de Vichet (16th century): Communion wafers have been made
since 1868 in this 16th century larged doored private home.
C H
ôtel de Villefranche (16th century): The Marquis de Villefranche lived
in this private home until the 19th century. In the early 20th century,
It became a girl’s state school for more than a century. Today, important
renovation work has given this home its former architectural splendour
back from the De Villefranche’s era.
D H
ôtel de Crillon (16th century): This private home was the family resi-
7
dence of Brave Crillon, Henri the IVth’s comrade in arms. Crillon
was considered to be the greatest captain in the world by the king.
It is thought he stayed in this residence while visiting his family.
His brother was the governor of Pernes for a period of time. The Hôtel
de Crillon is now a retirement home.
E E
glise des Augustins (19th century): In the 12th century, we know that
there used to be a monastery where this church was built. After being
disused for a while, this church was turned into a cultural centre in 1987.
The wall paintings of the painter Charles Barbentan can be seen in the
amazing room located on the first floor.
F T our Ferrande (12th century): This tower houses extremely rare
medieval frescoes (from the 13th century) telling about battles lead
by Saint Louis’s brother Charles D’Anjou in Southern Italy. (Compulsory
booking at the tourist office).
G Chateau d’Anselme (16th to the 19th century): It was the Marquis
d’Anselme’s residence until the early eighties. The castle dominates
the Nesque river with its impressive towers from the Renaissance era.
H E
glise Notre-Dame de Nazareth* (11th century): This edifice is a
typical Romanesque church of Provence. Most of its architectural
elements are from the 12th century. From then, each century brought
modifications to the church such as new chapels, new openings and new
paintings. The beautiful organ we can see in the church was built in the
16th century. This organ got its splendour back thanks to its renovation
in 1975. It has been five centuries now that the thousand-year-old vaults
of the church have been housing the sound of its musical notes.
I P
orte Notre-Dame* (16th century): This gate which was built in 1548
is defined as a square shaped tower flanked by two corbel based semicircular towers. On the massive gate we can see several openings and
arrow slits located in a specific way that would permit crossfires. We
can also see a shield on which the pope’s coat of arms was damaged
by being hammered during the French Revolution. The Notre-Dame des
Graces chapel that we can see on the bridge on which Porte Notre-Dame
is located was built between 1510 and 1516. For years, this chapel was
the place where the stonemasons’ guild would meet.
La Halle Couverte (17th century) was under construction from 1622 to
1627. It used to house the market of the time period and was considered
as a meeting place for the bourgeoisie at night. Later in 1920, la Halle
Couverte used to house a movie theatre that was destroyed in 1967
in order to give the Hall its initial aspect back.
J M
aison Fléchier ou Musée des Traditions Comtadines*
(17th century): The Maison Fléchier owes its name to the Sacred
Speaker at the court of King Louis XIV, Esprit Fléchier, who was born and
grew up in this private home. Esprit Fléchier was famous for his funeral
orations, and especially for the Turenne funeral oration. The Musée des
Traditions Comtadines keeps the traditions of Provencal christmas alive
by introducing on a large table in the dining-room the Gros Souper (Main
Supper eaten on chisitmas eve) and the «Treize desserts» (13 different
kinds of desserts were introduced on a large table after the Main supper
such as nougat, walnuts…). This museum also houses the reconstruction
of the last santon-maker’s workshop from the village, the reconstruction
of an old silkworm nursery and a tribute to the Canal de Carpentras’s
creator Louis Giraud.
K C
ouvent des Ursulines (17th century): This convent was founded by
nuns thanks to a grant they received from the town only if they would
teach the young girls for free. Today, the whole edifice is interesting to
look at because of its massive aspect and its austerity.
L H
ôtel de Camaret (17th century): This private home has always
belonged to the De Camaret family. Indeed, the descendants of this
family own it and have kept the furniture, the architectural style and the
tapestry from the 17th century.
M Tour de l’Horloge (12th century): The senechals and later the eccle-
siastical rectors lived in this former castle of the Counts of Toulouse. A
massive clock was set on its facade in the 15th century. At the top of the
tower, we can see a weather vane on which a mouse is being chased
by a cat. This weather vane is the origin of two sayings, well known to
the locals: «Il est haut comme le chat de Pernes» («He is as high as the
cat of Pernes») and «Il est au milieu comme le chat de Pernes («He is
in the middle just like the cat of Pernes»). At the bottom of the tower, we
can see former prisons with walls covered by hundreds-year-old graffitis.
(Compulsory booking at the tourist office).
N M
ur Castral: This wall was 1600 metres long when it was built in the
12th century, but only a small part of it is left today.
O H
ôtel de Cheylus (16th to the 18th century): We know that there used
to be a medieval Jewish quarter at the exact same place where this
residence was built. In its cellars, we can find the only private medieval
Jewish ritual bath known so far in the county. The Hotel de Cheylus is
now a private home.
P H
ôtel de Barruel (17th to the 18th century): This private home has
kept its antique aspect and its beautiful niche.
A
Q H
ôtel de Jocas (17th century): This private home stands out because
of its door, considered to be one of the most beautiful in Pernes. The
door itself is spectacular and so is the sculptured stone frame.
R P
orte St Gilles (14th century): This entrance-way is the oldest fortified
gate in the town. Inside the fortifications, we can still see the room where
the portcullis was operated from and the vault from where the men
guarded the gate.
S Hôtel de Brancas (17th century): The name of this private home refers to
the Brancas family that built it. In 1741, this private home became the place
where the local council would meet. After walking through the courtyard
to get into the Hôtel de Brancas, a pretty carved door gives access to a
staircase with a richly decorated ceiling that takes you to the first floor. You
will be amazed by two beautiful living-rooms with «plafonds à la Francaise»
(French style ceiling: beams very close to each other) and a frieze of oil
paintings representing landscapes, battle, mythology and marine scenes.
F
usée Comtadin du Cycle: You will discover an amazing collection of
M
old bicycles in this museum that occupies the vaulted cellars of the current
Town Hall. You will get to trace the incredible history of this device from
the 1870’s velocipede to the 2008’s Paris-Beijing bicycle and the tandem
from the 1936’s paid holiday. This museum is a beautiful tribute to the
local father of French bicycle touring: Paul De Vivie, the famous Velocio.
T Place des Comtes de Toulouse: On this square remain two old towers
that belonged to the Counts of Toulouse’s castle. One of these towers
houses an old oil mill set up there in the 18th century.
U C
hapelle Notre-Dame de la Rose (17th century): This chapel owes its
name «Notre-Dame de la Rose» to a painted Virgin holding a rose on an
adjoining wall. It used to be the place where the weavers and carders’
guilds would meet.
V C
hapelle des pénitents blancs (12th century): We know that an old
church used to be where the Chapelle des Pénitants Blancs is. After being
fitted out by locals in order to become a performance hall, this chapel was
restored in 2004 and has hosted numerous exhibitions since then.
W P
orte Villeneuve (16th century): We can see a patrol path at the top of
this vaulted gate flanked by two circular towers. The town’s coat of arms
was destroyed during the French Revolution.
Notre-Dame des Abcès (16th century): This chapel located right in
front of the Porte de Villeneuve was built as a response to a vow made
when the plague was ravaging the town.
X C
roix Couverte (15th century): This very rare cross commemorates
the day when Pierre de Boet (the first syndic in the town) gave Cardinal
De Foix the keys to the town on May 13th, 1433. It is with the Croix de
Beaucaire the unique beautiful cross in Provence.
Out of the map:
Y Eglise Notre-Dame des Valayans (19th century): The inside of this
church is entirely covered with wall paintings made by Charles Barbentan.
Z M
usée de La Vieille Ecole : This museum is located on the first floor of
the small Town Hall that was built in 1930.
*: Monuments that are classified or registered as Historical Monuments.
The city’s coat of arms
The colour azure blue that covers the coat of arms’ background used to
be France’s dominant colour in olden days. The golden sun represents the
splendour of the town in the past centuries and the silver pearl symbolises
the fertility of the region’s agricultural lands. The town’s beautiful motto
«Inter alia lucet dei gratia» surrounds the coat of arms. When translated into
English, this motto would mean that, thanks to the grace of God, Pernes-LesFontaines shines brighter than any other town.
Office de
Tourisme
Place Gabriel Moutte
84210 Pernes-les-Fontaines
Tél. : 04 90 61 31 04
Fax : 04 90 61 33 23
E-mail : contact@tourisme-pernes.fr
www.tourisme-pernes.fr