
Craft Industry, south of France
Turning dreams into reality!
The artistic and craft professions express the cultural identity of a region which has always successfully preserved and nurtured its traditions. This living heritage, (the daily aspects of which have remained unchanged over the years resulting in the creation of traditional products or more contemporary variations), invites visitors to come and explore the very interior of the Languedoc-Roussillon area.
The skills of the region’s craftsmen and women can be discovered in countless villages, including basketry in Vallabrègues, ceramics and potteries in Anduze, the tradition of jewellery making using Catalan garnet, the bookmaking and paper trades in Montolieu not forgetting the area’s textile heritage too, which can be admired in the Cevennes through the silk trade or in the Pyrenees with its Catalan fabrics.
This outstanding concentration of craft-related activities reveals another side to the Languedoc’s culture, that of its fascinating artistic trades.
Medieval in tradition and Provencal in essence...
In an attractive little village, a number of unexpected treasures await the most tenacious visitor.
Glassmaking was once a thriving industry in Languedoc-Roussillon.
Arts and craft industry : a Legendary Vase in Anduze.
Tradition and ancestral know-how, arts and craft industry in Languedoc-Roussillon.
An annex of the Savonnerie was given over to a carpet-making workshop with Royal approval, later to be nationalised.
Certain villages are intrinsically linked to their activities.
The earliest traces of the «trahandiers», or silk-pullers, go back to the 13th century in Anduze.