If for you holidays rhyme with cultural discoveries and crafts, then Lezoux is the perfect city for your stay in Livradois-Forez.
Indeed, rich in his pottery know-how and his Departmental Museum of Ceramics, you will fall under the spell of its sigillated ceramics, prized throughout Europe during Antiquity.
In the 1st century, the antique workshops of Lezoux were indeed the most important production center for terracotta objects in the Empire. Lezoux thus flooded the whole Roman world with his sigillated pottery. These were transported through an impressive road network.
At the Departmental Museum of Ceramics in Lezoux, immerse yourself in the heart of the most famous craftsmanship of Roman Gaul
Thus, Fabienne Gateau, curator and director of the Departmental Museum of Ceramics, explains that “ the archaeological site of Lezoux is very particular. Because from the first to the fifth century, hundreds of potters were organized to make thousands of sigillated vases. The distribution of the latter was then massive. Fragments are found as far away as Asia, Vietnam. She adds to conclude that “ the sigillata technique is still present in Lezoux. »
Indeed, craftsmen practice the art of terracotta in the city and its surroundings where they make and sell their creations. The sigillata technique is notably used by Arnau Trullén, an archaeologist by training. He has been a potter in Lezoux for a few years in his workshop Ars Fictilis.
In a former earthenware factory, the Departmental Museum of Ceramics thus presents 1 m300 of scenographic route. The pottery can be touched in a tactile and playful journey. The museum is definitely worth the trip.
Arnau Trullen, archaeologist and potter, a passion for ceramics to share in Livradois-Forez
The sigillata is a Gallo-Roman tableware of orange-red color, characterized by reliefs which can represent characters, animals, vegetation. " I reproduce antique models. There is always my personal trace, even if we are very close to the original. Therefore, there are pieces that I really like, like this production with a very organized plant decoration, with flowers, garlands. »
Walk through the doors ofArs Fictilis, the workshop where archeology and pottery mingle
His workshop is a gold mine for all lovers of antique crockery. Every week, he rethinks and tests his ceramic production techniques. A living workshop, a fascinating man, to discover before or after the museum. But to call certainly to be sure to meet him. All his creations are reproductions of archaeological furniture and his unique experience. Immerse yourself in time and rediscover the gestures of the Gallo-Roman potter from Livradois-Forez.
“Making pottery yourself allows you to better understand how the artisans of the time worked. This allows you to see the drying time, the difficulty of making a mould… This is called experimental archaeology. »
–Arnau Trullen
Tips from the Lezoux Departmental Museum, a partnership with the National Center for Stage Costume and the Concerts de Vollore
Did you know that your full price ticket to the Lezoux Departmental Ceramics Museum entitles you to reduced price access?
Enjoy!
- National Center for Stage Costume (CNCS) in Moulins
- The Vollore Concerts in Livradois-Forez.
To conclude, be creative and let the clay reveal your soul as a Gallo-Roman potter in Livradois-Forez.
With family or friends: meet the potters and let yourself be guided.
Just off the highway, between Clermont-Ferrand and Thiers, an archaeological stop not to be missed.
