Visitor Information

Conservatoire des Ocres et des Pigments Appliqués, Usine Mathieu
84220 Roussillon.
Tél:.04 90 05 66 69.
Fax 04 90 05 66 69.
Site open for visits daily from February until November.

Touched by Fire

The colours of Provence are unmistakable, yet their vibrant palette owes much to the unique qualities of a natural product found in one small corner of the Luberon. We visit the village of Roussillon.

The perched villages of the south have one thing in common: a natural and longstanding desire for the kind of security which is best served by being located in a high place which would be easily defended against any unwelcome visitors. Their appearance is not only striking; the mere fact that you can see them from afar also means that an approaching enemy would be denied any hope of taking the inhabitants unawares. Thus Gordes, Bonnieux, Lacoste and others sited themselves wisely for perceived strategic advantage. No doubt those who established the original castrum here on the summit of Monte Rossillone felt similarly confident of the wisdom of their choice, but history was to prove otherwise.

A hundred or so million years ago, the landmass of what is now Provence lay beneath the sea. The sedimentary accumulations which appeared during this time gradually turned to chalk and were in turn covered by deposits of sandy clay tinted grey-green by their high iron content. After the seas retreated the climate became tropical and the deposits, now exposed to the elements, gradually solidified and turned from green to red as the iron oxidised. The result was ochre, the richest deposits of which were laid down at the foot of the Alps between the Monts du Luberon and the Plateau de Vaucluse. In fact, Monte Rossillone was made of it.

It didn't take early man long to discover that ochre pigments were not only rich in colour but long-lasting, and numerous prehistoric cave paintings still retain their full vibrancy. The area was later exploited by the Romans, and the outside world began to get the message (the name ochre derives, in fact, from the Greek okhra, meaning yellow land). Ochre is, of course, far from unique to the area, but nowhere else possesses such a wide range of tints. Eventually not only Roussillon, but Apt, Gargas, Gignac, Rustrel and Villars developed commercial ochre quarries which gradually became more and more productive in response to demand from growing communities for decorative and durable wall coatings. This artisanal pattern of usage provided a steady trade for the quarries, until the coming of widespread industrialisation during the 19th Century, whereupon new uses were found for the non-toxic ochre-based pigments. Soon they were colouring everything from cigarette filters and elastic bracelets to linoleum and wellington boots. Exploitation peaked in 1929, a year in which no fewer than 40,000 tonnes were extracted from the hills around Roussillon. Within just a few years, however, everything would change, as manufacturers embraced newly-developed cheap, synthetic pigments. For village communities heavily dependent upon the ochre trade it was a bitter blow, but for one in particular the end of quarrying appears to have come just in time.

Approach Roussillon today and its distinctive outline differs markedly from those of its more obvious counterparts. Instead of the expected smoothly rising contours of a conventional hilltop setting, the village appears suspended precariously on all sides above steep, cliff-like rock faces. Draw closer, through the surrounding pine-clad hills and the reason becomes all too obvious. The rock faces actually turn out to be all that is left of Monte Roussillone after centuries of quarrying had nibbled ever deeper into it, and poised high above it is Roussillon, glowing with the same vibrancy as the pillar of pigment on which it is now forever marooned. The silver lining to this particular cloud is the fact that the drama of the scene has made the village world-famous, attracting countless visitors, many of whom return again and again just to see another variation of the constantly-changing effect. Occasionally some are so captivated that they decide to stay. In 1940, when Paris fell to the Nazis, Samuel Beckett joined the French Resistance. When his unit was betrayed in 1942 he fled to the south of France and spent the remaining years of the war in Roussillon, where he wrote the novel Watt. Sunrise and sunset in particular often provide unforgettable displays, as the intensity of the tints, from pale gold to blood red (beneath terra-cotta pantile roofs), gradually rises to a brief but stunning crescendo, before being suddenly muted by the cool, advancing veil of night. The show's over for another day, but there will be many others.

But beauty here is more than skin-deep. Exploring the narrow ruelles and placettes provides an object lesson in the architectural diversity of the south, from the old stones warmed and cooled by the extremes of sun and rain to which the village is so mercilessly exposed, to the ancient doorways which reflect the personalities of their creators. No two are the same. What shade there is comes from the intimacy of the buildings and the addition of the occasional vine, an olive or cypress tree, whose tones provide the perfect complement to the natural ochre tints of the limewashed (badigeon) render of the buildings. Another salient feature is a broad band of white surrounding every window, either in exposed natural stone or simply painted on. Set within are brightly-coloured shutters, traditionally in vibrant blue (which is said to deter insects) but now almost anything goes, given that modern tints will soon fade to something more subdued under the action of the sun's rays. Here and there are the unmistakable signs of former prosperity, expressed in an 18th Century wrought iron balcony, a Renaissance portico or a grandiose doorway in panelled heavy, richly-figured oak, but for the most part such surroundings put the lid firmly on social ambition. The winding route to the upper reaches of the village passes the église, a haunting vision in warm pink topped by a Provencal wrought iron clocher, and today showing little sign of its long period of almost total decay during the 18th and 19th Centuries. The topmost plateau is still known as le castrum, and once possessed a medieval château of which next to nothing remains, but the site offers sweeping views over the rooftops of the village and out to the surrounding countryside.

The former quarrying area below the village has now long since reverted to the calm of former days. The extraction of ochre has left its marks, however, and a footpath (le sentier des ocres) has been created to allow visitors to discover for themselves the sheer scale of the workings, and the startling range of totally natural colours which brought Roussillon and its companions lasting fame. Another particularly striking example of the work of nature is found further east, beyond St Saturnin d'Apt at Rustrel. The area long ago acquired the name of Colorado, although its abandoned quarries actually have more of the appearance of a Martian landscape, with tall pillars of saffron-coloured ochre left standing by natural erosion amid a vast sea of undulating pastel contours.

Not all is abandonment, however. With the collapse of demand from the mass-producers, some of the quarries simply reverted to their traditional pattern of working, supplying the needs of the regional construction industry. In fact, in recent years a growing official awareness of the need to conserve architectural heritage of the regions of France has led to something of a revival of the fortunes of the remaining quarries. Local planning regulations now require any renovation work to be carried out using only authentic, traditional materials and techniques, so the future is assured. For proof of this, drive just a kilometre or so from the village of Roussillon on the Route d'Apt and you'll discover the Conservatoire des Ocres et des Pigments Appliqués, established to promote awareness of the materials, plus the processes of extraction, purification and usage of ochre.

So, things have come full circle for this most distinctive of villages, whose inhabitants may be doubly thankful, not only for the great natural wealth by which they are surrounded, but that the extraction which once threatened their very existence was halted just in time.

© Words and pictures Roger Moss
This feature first appeared in everything France magazine Issue 5

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