Artignosc-sur-Verdon

Overview

A commune in the Var (83), within the Haut-Var Verdon area, close to the Lac de Sainte-Croix and the lower gorges of the Verdon. A member of the communauté de communes Lacs et Gorges du Verdon and of the Parc naturel régional du Verdon.

Where to stay in Artignosc-sur-Verdon

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What to see, what to do

Parish church of Saint-Pierre

A church of Romanesque origin (formerly Sainte-Marie-Madeleine), enlarged over the centuries, with semicircular vaults and a square bell tower. Its bell is protected as a monument historique (movable object). The gable wall long served for playing jeu de paume (a traditional ball game).

Castle of Artignosc

The village castle, now divided among several owners; the commune keeps the central part, which houses the town hall and dwellings.

Bulb fountain

A round 18th-century bulb fountain, with an octagonal basin, modified in 1889 with the addition of a bronze Marianne.

Covered washhouse

A 'high' washhouse allowing washing while standing, roofed over in 1844.

Fortified farm of Fontaygne

A former dependency of the Order of the Temple, equipped with two dovecote-towers, which passed to the Hospitallers after the transfer of the Temple's property.

Rural chapels

Several restored chapels across the area: Saint-Christophe, Sainte-Euphémie, Sainte-Trinité and Notre-Dame-la-Brune.

Water sports centre on the Artignosc lake

A starting point for exploring the lower gorges of the Verdon (kayak, canoe and electric-boat hire). The GR 99 long-distance path linking Quinson to Baudinard crosses the area.

The Promontoire rock shelter

A rock shelter attesting to early occupation of the plateau.

History of Artignosc-sur-Verdon

The name Artignosc is thought to derive from a Gaulish gentile name ('Artinius') completed by a pre-Latin suffix. The 'castrum de Artignosco' is mentioned in 1232 in the list of localities of the diocese of Riez. The original priory, given to the Abbey of Saint-Victor in Marseille by the de Pontevès family in 1036, then passed to the Abbey of Lérins (1113). The first castle village, at Saint-Estève, was abandoned in the early 14th century after the plague and the wars of succession; a new village was rebuilt at the end of the 15th century, repopulated by families from Liguria and Spain. In 1632, Jean-Antoine de Thoron, a councillor at the Parlement of Provence, acquired the lands and became the first lord of the name. During the coup d'état of December 1851, Artignosc was among the communes that rose up: some fifty men joined the ranks at Aups on 8 December 1851, and twenty-one republicans from Artignosc would later be prosecuted and then compensated by the Third Republic in 1882. During the Second World War, a local liberation committee was formed; the Saint-Laurent bridge over the Verdon was sabotaged by the FTP on 20 July 1944 and then bombed by Allied aircraft in August 1944. The commune took the name 'Artignosc-sur-Verdon' in 1937.

Events & highlights

Artignosc jeu de paume (Festa della pauma) — A local tradition

The traditional practice of jeu de paume, played against the gable wall of the church, listed in the Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage in France.