Ochre Villages

So dramatic is the vibrant color of the hills on the ocher trail that this area was the subject of an equally dramatic legend as to its origin.

Locals who during centuries past, had no knowledge about the combination of oxides in the rock, told the story of Seramonde, the young wife of Raymond of Avignon. Raymond was also the lord of Castel-Roussillon, and legend has it that his wife fell in love with a young troubadour, Guillem de Cabestang,  who came to sing at court.  Upon his return from a hunting trip, Raymond found his young wife with Guillem, so the incensed, and much older Raymond, killed Guillem.  Unbeknown to Seramonde, Raymond then had  Guillem’s heart served to her at a banquet. Upon learning of Raymond’s callous deed, the distraught Seramonde,  threw herself from the cliffs of Roussillon, forever staining the ground red with her blood.

Today, the ocher trail,  known as the Colorado of Provence, so aesthetically appealing with its seventeen shades of ocher, makes a very attractive and interesting venue for visitors to Provence.

Rousillon & Rustrel

Rousillon - a spectacularly picturesque Medieval village owes much of its visual appeal to the ocher hill on which it is situated and the varying and strong colors of the houses built by villagers over the centuries who used the local material to tint them.  Colors ranging from rich yellows to intense reds decorate the homes in this village.  Ocher has been used as a tint for coloring for centuries and in 1780 commercial dev...
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