Samoëns is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.

The village of Samoëns is located in the Vallée du Giffre in the French Alps and carries the designation of a "ville fleurie" distinguishing it as one of the most beautiful towns in France. It is a popular summer destination as well as the site of a ski resort that departs from a new lift (Grand massif Express) at the edge of town linking up to Samoëns 1600 also known as the Plateau des Saix, this resort is part of the larger five town Grand Massif which includes Flaine and Morillon. The Grand Massif ski area has 265 km of slopes (17 Green, 60 blue, 53 Red and 14 Black)

Stonecutters

Stone has long been a traditional feature of the Upper Giffre Valley which is dotted with limestone quarries (hardness coefficient, 13). To complement their income from farming, the men in the region used to work stone.

In 1659, there were so many frahans (the local name for stonecutters) in Samoëns and their expertise was so well-known that they set up a very famous brotherhood. It engaged in charity work, taking care of the sick and training young apprentices in its own school of draughtsmen, which had an extensive library.

The members of the brotherhood of masons and stonecutters in Samoëns were contacted for leading construction projects. They worked with Vauban on his fortifications, were commissioned by Napoleon Bonaparte to build canals in Saint-Quentin, and worked in Givors and even further afield, in Poland or Louisiana.

To ensure that they were not understood by outsiders when talking to each other, they used their own dialect, called mourmé.

Evidence of their talent can be seen all over the village, in its architecture. Even now, there are a number of stonecutters upholding the tradition in Samoëns and the brotherhood has become a cultural association, the Société des Maçons. It offers tours with eight enthusiastic guides who show visitors the Samoëns of the past and present.

Land of Art and History

Samoëns is the only winter sports resort to be classified by the Caisse Nationale des Monuments Historiques. Guided visits are a good way of discovering the history of the town and its surrounding hamlets.

Jaysinia botanical garden and house, the Cognacq-Jay Foundation

Jaÿsinia (3.7 hectares) is a botanical garden specializing in alpine flowers, established in 1906 by Marie-Louise Cognac-Jaÿ, a native of Samoëns and founder of La Samaritaine department store in Paris. Since 1936 it has been directed by the Scientific Division of Botany from the National Museum of Natural History. It is open all year and is free of charge.

Chapels

There are no less than nine chapels in and around Samoëns, not counting the many shrines and other cultural buildings visible in a landscape dotted with hamlets. Most of them were built in the 17th century (except for the chapel in Le Bérouze, which dates from the fifteenth century and the one in Les Allamands dating from the nineteenth century).

The onion domes suddenly come into view as you round a corner in a footpath, reminding today's hikers of the patient work undertaken by the craftsmen of days gone by.

Two of these small buildings have had a surprising history – they were moved from one place to another! The chapel in Le Bérouze was originally built at the mountain pass known as Col de Couz but it was badly damaged during an invasion by Swiss troops in 1476. Four years later, it was decided to "bring it down the mountain" and rebuild it on the main square in Le Bérouze.

In Mathonex, the chapel looks down over the village like a lighthouse warning sailors of the dangers of the coastline but the original building was much closer to the centre of the village. Its "relocation" became a necessity after a landslide.

See also

• Reseau Jean Bernard
• Grand Massif
• Morillon
• Communes of the Haute-Savoie department

References

http://www.alpsaccommodation.com/

External links

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