An authentic Var village
Salernes, the terracotta village
25 kms from the « aux vallons » campsite in Bauduen, the village of Salernes awaits you for a pleasant visit. Throughout its history, this small village of craftsmen has retained its expertise in the ceramics industry.
Indeed, Neolithic man has left numerous traces of his art in the caves of the Salernois area, including Fontbrégoua (occupied since 12,000 BC). This pottery, considered to be the oldest in Western Europe, dates back over 7,000 years.
Exclusively used for domestic purposes, this pottery was used to store, preserve and cook food, especially that which had been gathered. To make it, men used the local clay, which was red, ferruginous and elastic. The potter’s wheel did not appear until the Iron Age.
In the Middle Ages and the centuries that followed, ceramic craftsmanship continued without much change.
It was at the beginning of the 19th century that the business really took off and Salernes became the village with the famous « tomettes » that everyone has seen on the floor of a house from their childhood!
Tomette was initially exported to building merchants in Toulouse, Marseille and Nice, before becoming ubiquitous in French construction.
The small tomette was used to rebuild houses ruined during the war, particularly those in Toulon.
By the 1960s, ceramics had fallen out of fashion, and the village of Salernes began its conversion in the 1970s with the addition of enamel and decoration.
Today, workshops perpetuate the tradition and know-how of production, notably with the creation of TERRA ROSSA, the house of architectural ceramics.
Salernes’ heritage
The Romanesque, Cistercian-inspired church of Saint Pierre de Salernes, with its 12th-century campanile.
Saint-Jacques chapel and Notre-Dame de Clarté monastery.
The 17th-century Gourgaret bridge
The fountain in Place de la Révolution
The Tholos de la Lauve, an exceptional megalithic tomb on the Lauve plateau in the commune of Salernes.
All these sites are waiting to be discovered during your stay at your campsite near the Gorges du Verdon, where you can take advantage of the many cultural visits on offer in the Var and Alps de Hautes Provence regions.
Photo credits:
Terra Rossa : https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Salernes_Terra_Rossa_entr%C3% A9e.JPG
JPS68 [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]
Fontaine:https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/Salernes_fontaine_place_de_la_R%C3% A9volution.jpg
Pierre Bona [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]
