Tourist attractions Les Baux-de-Provence

The must-see buildings in Les Baux include: the former town hall and its museum of "santons" (Christmas crib figures), and the Porcelet mansion which houses the Museum dedicated to Yves Brayer, who painted the pastoral scenes in the Péniten..

From the Gallo-Roman period up to the end of the Middle Ages, the Alyscamps ("Champs-Élysées") was one of the most prestigious necropolises in the West. Its heyday came when the necropolis was Christianised, with relics from St Trophimus an..

Located between Arles and Avignon, the Alpilles chain is a geological extension of the Luberon, divided into the Alpilles des Baux to the West and the Alpilles d’Eygalières to the East. The villages ( Les Baux-de-Provence , Fontvieille, Maussane, etc..

The plateau is composed of Glanum city , abandoned in the 15C following barbaric invasions, and two superb monuments, the mausoleim and the municipal arch which amidst a wood of pine trees paint one of the most romantic pictures imaginable.

One of the favourite residences of King René of Anjou , who commissioned the highly refined exterior decoration. Don't miss the outer bailey and apothecary, the royal court with the cantors' chapel and the many-sided turret housing a stairway. The..

The Arles arenas which were transformed into a fortress in the 5th and 6th C (retaining their two, «Saracen towers» - medieval alterations) and then into a veritable «town within a town», have been extremely well conserved. Today the arenas are the s..

With its two impressively preserved columns standing in a landscape of rare elegance, the Théâtre Antique is one of the greatest Roman theatres from the end of the 1C BC. It served as quarry from the 5C, was transformed into a fortified reduit in the..

The carved decoration of the 12C-14C cloisters is most remarkable, in particular that of the capitals and the magnificent corner pillars in the north gallery (on the left on entering). Those in the east gallery, next to the refectory, depict the Life..

Large statuary (the colossal statue of Auguste that adorned the stage of the theatre), models illustrating how the city and its monuments developed in imperial times, the daily life of the people of Arles in Ancient times, splendid mosaics and an a..

Its classical 17C façade, terraces and balustrades decorated with lions and flower urns overlook a pond and Italian-style park. The interior of the château, designed by Louis-François de Valfenière, features an 18C décor of Italian inspiration. The f..

This museum devoted to Figurative painter Yves Brayer (1907-1990) presents his paintings of Spain, Italy and Morocco, with their contrasting black, red and ochre tones, as well as bullfighting scenes and watercolours of his travels. But it is certain..

The vestiges of the Château des Baux, demolished in 1632 by order of Richelieu, include the ruins of the citadel, three towers (Sarrasine, des Bannes and Paravelle), the castle chapel (12C-16C) and the keep, with a splendid panorama. You can get ther..

The 18m-high Mausolée is one of the finest examples of the Roman world, and is still intact. Bas-reliefs depicting battle and hunting scenes decorate the four sides of the square base. On the first floor, beneath a maritime fresco, is the inscription..

The perfect proportions and the exceptional quality of the sculpted decor of the arch indicate a Greek influence: a single arcade embellished with a beautiful garland of fruit and foliage, a vault decorated with finely chiselled coffers, sculptures o..

A Celto-Ligurian tribe, the Glanics, made this sanctuary into a city, which was in close contact with local merchants and comprised the public buildings and peristyle houses that were highly influenced by Hellenistic style. The Roman conquest gave ri..

Here you can see a series of mural paintings on the theme of torture, by Mario Prassinos (1916-1985) for the Notre-Dame-de-Pitié chapel: tortured trunks and branches, in an austere contrast of black and white a few days before the artist died of ca..

Remarkable pieces excavated at the Glanum archaeological site are exhibited at the Hôtel de Sade (15C-16C).

The Montmajour site was an island in the marshes which extended from the River Rhône to the Alpilles. The abbey was saved by the painter, Jacques Réattu. The remains include the 12C church of Notre-Dame , the Romanesque cloister with its capitals,..

This former townhouse housed the famous calico print factory beginning in 1806. The museum, devoted to these colourful fabrics, has nearly 40,000 wood print blocks with brass tips. The blocks were applied manually, then hammered by workers who printe..

The event is immortalised in a painting by Carle Van Loo depicting a kindly-looking Tarasque. The collegial church, built in the 12C and partly reconstructed in the 14C, has preserved its attractive Romanesque gate (south side), although the scul..