The small stone bridge over the Rancure torrent, built in 1698, served as an aqueduct to bring drinking water from the Boucharde spring to the village fountains. It was called the "aqueduct of the fountains."
Description
In order to have water in the village, the inhabitants had channeled the water from the Boucharde spring in the Sainte Anne valley by overlapping flat stones and then by glazed terracotta conduits. These conduits passed through the Rancure, which at the time was a torrent, and went to the village.
Unfortunately, numerous floods destroyed the pipes time and time again. First, a wooden bridge was built but was knocked down several times, notably during the flood of the summer of 1669.
Also, the idea of building a resistant bridge emerged during a meeting of the consuls on April 04, 1660.
The construction of a stone bridge was put up for auction from August 05 to 27, 1696 and leased to Mr. André Brun Barthellemy, Antoine Astoin and Jean Vallon. It was completed in 1698.
The characteristics of the bridge:
width between the two pillars: 14 meters
width of the arch vault: 2.50 meters
width of the pedestrian crossing: 1.70 meters.
The small bridge was renovated in June 2010.
A l'occasion du 22 éme Concours pour la Sauvegarde du Patrimoine, la commune d'Oraison a reçu un diplôme d'honneur, le 06 avril 2011 au Palais du Luxembourg, délivré par la Société pour la Protection des Paysages et de l'Esthétique de la France (SPPEF) pour la réfection du pont et la restauration des oratoires.
Visit Info:
It is freely accessible. You can visit it whenever you want.
Details concerning animals : Free access
Other details
Free access visit
Comfort and amenities
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Free access.
Opening
From 01/01 to 31/12 every day.