VALLÉE DE LA CÉRAMIQUE

Take a cultural break along the Canal du Centre and relive the golden age of ceramics in Burgundy with picturesque walks through the Vallée de la Céramique. Nestling between the Dheune and Bourbince valleys, the Vallée de la Céramique bears witness to the fascinating history of ceramics, long the region's third-largest industrial sector.

Ceramic production in Le Creusot and Montceau began in 1850 with industrialization and the rise of the steam engine. All the elements were in place to encourage this flourishing industry: clay-rich subsoil, railroads to transport production and abundant coal from the Blanzy coal mines to fuel the kilns. In the ^19th century, some forty factories were established in the Vallée de la Céramique. Potters' workshops and tile factories were booming, and workshops were running at full capacity. Stoneware tiles and containers, earthenware decorations, tiles, bricks and ceramics were mass-produced, and demand was growing. Between 1870 and 1920, the Montchanin, Chagny and Ecuisses tile factories, the Digoin, Palinges and Pouilloux stoneware potteries, and the Paray-le-Monial tile factory all flourished.

In 1940, with the arrival of new materials, the ceramics industry fell into decline. Today, it's possible to see the vestiges of this great epic: along the Canal du Centre, strolling through the villages of some fifteen communes, you'll notice many facades adorned with multicolored earthenware and remarkable architectural witnesses. Be sure to stop off at Ecuisses, where the glazed tiles and finials of the famous Villa Perrusson are a beautiful reminder of this unique know-how. A veritable life-size catalog of what was produced at the time, the villa was built in 1869 by the Perrusson family, a local industrialist family. In addition to the splendid grounds, the villa offers a rich program of events. Last but not least, the Briqueterie de Ciry-le-Noble, a former brick and paving tile manufacturing site that ceased operations in 1967, is an interpretation center well worth a visit. A branch of the Ecomusée Le Creusot Montceau, the 7,500 m² site immerses visitors in the atmosphere of the workshops of the time. Temporary exhibitions on arts and crafts are regularly scheduled.