Besse’s rural heritage

Besse, a commune awarded the “Petite Cité de caractère” label in the Puy-de-Dôme region

– 16th-century fountain : listed as a Historic Monument by decree of January 21, 1926. At the center of the basin stands a column with a hexagonal capital topped by a ball (Location : Place de la(…)

Besse, a commune awarded the “Petite Cité de caractère” label in the Puy-de-Dôme region

– 16th-century fountain : listed as a Historic Monument by decree of January 21, 1926. At the center of the basin stands a column with a hexagonal capital topped by a ball (Location : Place de la Gayme, medieval town of Besse).

– Bread oven (Location : hamlet of La Villetour in Besse, route du Mont-Dore). These small ovens, once essential to daily life in the countryside, were used to bake bread for several families in the hamlet, symbolizing the heart of community exchanges in days gone by.

– Chapelle Notre-Dame de Vassivière (Location : from Besse, follow signs for Super-Besse. At the Lac Pavin traffic circle, go straight on, then take the road rising to the right towards the Vassivière chapel). Perched on a plateau south of Besse, the Notre-Dame de Vassivière chapel is an emblematic historical and religious site on the Sancy massif. Built in the XVIᵉ century, it is known as a high place of pilgrimage and welcomes the Black Madonna every summer in an atmosphere of meditation and popular tradition.

– Way of the Cross to Vassivière Chapel (Location : from the hamlet Baraque de Vassivière to Chapelle Notre-Dame de Vassivière). 11 crosses line the path