Paying a few Euros will admit you to the two big archeological finds here. One is a mosaic floor. It is remarkable in size and completeness, apparently the floor of one of the main civic buildings. The other is the amphitheater, excavated to show how it made use of a natural bowl. It seated about 17,000 people, so we can deduce this was an important center, by combining this knowledge with the fact that the town sits in the center of a web of roads.
An interesting aspect of the town is its location. It is far from any traditional anchor for settlement, no river or natural fortification is nearby. To come here you have to do do for a purpose as we did. It is about 45 KM off the main routes. Historical records suggest the springs, underground rivers and easily dug wells gave rise to a sort of water cult before the Romans came. They continued this by building big bath houses here, as they did elsewhere, like Bath England. For the French this seems plausible. They continue this reverence for water at the many famous spa towns like Vittel nearby, where one goes goes for a water "cure" paid for by the social security system.
We finished a quick look-roud around about 4:00, so on the way out of town when we spotted a sign for a chambre d'hote we stopped to check it out and ended up staying. This enabled us to so more walking and meet more interesting people.
Walking the roads around the town makes one think about the fact that these roads were built by the Romans, and have been in service since then. The walls around the town can be seen as mounds in the fields, uncovered in places. The excavations show that the town is built along the same plan as the original town. What is surprising is that it is little larger than it was in ancient times. There is a system of underground rivers and springs here, that attracted the tribes and after them the Romans. Ironically, the water that runs underground also undermines the old church that was built over the main spring by the Catholic church when the power of Rome waned in the dark ages. They liked to build in such a way as to dominate a town's local spring. Now it is falling down and can't be used due to the instability of its foundation.
Another declining institution is the furniture making industry. As we had a drink with our hosts, we learned about recent history in the town. The man who owns the house had a friend over, a 76 year old farmer with an interest in history. So, we all talked for a while. After the usual questions about what it is like where we live, and what the US thinks of France, we learned that this was once the center of furniture making, with about 42 shops and factories. Now there are 2. It seems all the furniture is made in eastern Europe for less money. This is a theme we have heard repeatedly, as the protections erected by the government to maintain business here have been rendered moot by the unelected bureaucrats of the EU who sit in Belgium and make economic policy. This is not very popular, but is the logical extension of a political belief system that invests complete faith in centralized government.
We also heard about the American soldiers who were here in '44, and the 6 local girls who went home with them. Also that the Germans who were here for the previous years were well behaved, but as usual in these stories, nothing about the girls who went to Germany!
Such are the conversations we sometimes have as a bonus with a bed and breakfast.
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