- #FR13
- 1434 Rte de Croagne, 84400 Gargas, France
- +33490062259
- http://www.minesdebruoux.fr/
- Prices*:
Adult - 9,50€
Student - 8.50€ - * - opening and closing times as well as entrance prices, are subject to alterations without notice. Visitors are advised to check before visiting.
- 43.9081514, 5.3454872 Copy to clipboard Copy
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#Catacombs
Come and discover the Mines de Bruoux in Gargas and set off on a journey to the heart of the ocher of Luberon! Vertiginous cliffs with flamboyant colors and a gigantic labyrinth of underground galleries make up a unique and mysterious setting where human labor mingles with the natural beauty of the Provencal landscape. Visit these old quarries, monumental remains of the glory years of the ocher industry, and enter a maze of galleries more than 40 km long and 15 m high!
The guides of the Mines de Bruoux will accompany you on an underground course of 650 m where you will approach the geological, historical and industrial riches of this preserved place. Wonder and good humor guaranteed!
The use of ocher dates back to the Paleolithic, but it was in 1785, in Roussillon, that its exploitation began with Jean-Etienne Astier, who discovered a way to extract the precious ore. However, it was not until 1848 that the exploitation of ocher began in Gargas.
The Mines de Bruoux are testimony to the industrial epic that will last more than a century and during which the ocher trees, with the sweat of their brow, dug galleries with pickaxes, handled wagons and extracted ocher sands ...
The landscapes of this corner of Provence have been shaped by the hand of man. Without it, the ocher would have remained secret, hidden under the vegetation.
Today, the Société des Ocres de France, based in Apt, operates the last open-air ocher quarry in Europe at Gargas.