Moustiers-Sainte-Marie

Moustiers-Sainte-Marie is in Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, close to the Verdon landscape. The village is built beneath limestone cliffs and divided by a stream. Faïence production is an important part of its identity, with workshops and a museum devoted to the craft. The parish church has a distinctive Romanesque bell tower, while the chapel of Notre-Dame-de-Beauvoir stands above the houses and is reached by a rising path. A star hangs on a chain between the cliffs; stories explaining its origin belong to local legend rather than established documentary history. Moustiers-Sainte-Marie is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France. Its craft tradition, settlement and rocky setting are complementary subjects.

Brontekst in het Engels; Nederlandse vertaling niet beschikbaar.

The cliffs give Moustiers a theatrical enclosure, but the scale of the ceramics offers a useful counterpoint. Looking from the ravine and chapel route to a painted faïence object connects landscape and craft without turning one into an explanation for the other. The village is most rewarding when both receive attention.