Dry Stone

Rurale architecture in Luberon

The mysterious bories
Bories are made of pieces of rock found lying around by farmers. Around two to three hundred thousand stones are needed to make one borie. The technique is astonishing: no pestle, no mortar, no windows or chimneys. This archaic yet sophisticated method of building is extremely common in Luberon: there are thousands of bories of different shapes: the "gendarme's hat", pyramids, round, rectangle. Most of them were probably built between the 18th and 19th centuries.

Aiguiers
In the chalky parts of the Monts de Vaucluse, it is crucial to preserve water. An aiguier is a clever system for storing water used north of Apt, particularly around St Saturnin. It's basically a storage tank dug out of a rock, with grooves that catch rainwater; the water then flows down into tanks that are covered by a dry-stone corbelled vault.

Bancaus, wells, apiaries, cabanons, (cabins) clapas, pigeon houses
Luberon is stony country. The need to remove the stones from the earth, combined with the locals' resourcefulness and skill, has produced the area's distinctive architecture. A number of constructions have been built in order to carry out excavations, store water, and keep bees.

These features can be found all over the area :
- pigeon houses: all over Pays d’Apt - around Villars, La Tuilière, Saint Saturnin lès Apt, between Apt and Rustrel, Saint Martin de Castillon.
- bancaus (terraces): in Goult.
- bories: in Apt, on the Plateau des Claparèdes , in Gordes, and Viens.