Fontaine-de-Vaucluse (; oc, La Fònt de Vauclusa or simply ) is a
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
Vaucluse
Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019.spring of the same name; the name Vaucluse itself comes from the Latin phrase ''vallis clausa'' or "closed valley".
Heraldry
The coat of arms of the village of Fontaine-de-Vaucluse is:
"Blue, with a
Trout
Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...
and a Grayling, poised horizontally." ( Malte-Brun, in ''France Illustrated'', book V, 1884)
L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue
L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue (; oc, L'Illa de Sòrga or ) is a town and commune on the Sorgue river in Southeastern France. Politically, the commune is in the arrondissement of Avignon within the department of Vaucluse, in the région of Provence-Al ...
. It is named after the spring, the source of the River Sorgue.
Hydrography
The fountain, or spring, of Vaucluse, situated at the feet of a steep limestone cliff 230 metres high, is the biggest spring in France. It is also the fifth largest in the world with an annual flow of 630 million cubic metres.
The fountain of Vaucluse surges in March for about 5 weeks and then subsides. The increased flow of water swells the Sorgue to flood. The mechanism behind the surging remains somewhat of a mystery.
History
This village of about 600 inhabitants was once called ''Vaucluse'' or the "closed valley" (''Vallis Clausa'' in Latin) and it gave its name to the French department of Vaucluse. Several trails indicate human occupation in the area since the neolithic era. Its spring has been the object of a major cult since Antiquity, and the Sorgue was used as a trade route by the Phoenicians of Massalia and later the Romans. Following some major discoveries from two cave dives by the SSFV, two archaeological sites under the protection of the SRA PACA has allowed more than 1600 antique coins from the first century BC to the 5th century AD to be brought back up to the surface.
In the Middle Ages, a hermit supposedly lived in the spot. Eventually, he performed miracles that led to his being consecrated as Bishop of Cavaillon. His successor, Walcaudus, received the consent of the ruling counts of the area to settle monks there. A monastery was constructed, but was ruined by the 11th century. Clement, the Bishop of Cavaillon, ordered its reconstruction by Isarn, abbot of Sainte-Victoire. The poet
Petrarch
Francesco Petrarca (; 20 July 1304 – 18/19 July 1374), commonly anglicized as Petrarch (), was a scholar and poet of early Renaissance Italy, and one of the earliest humanists.
Petrarch's rediscovery of Cicero's letters is often credited ...
made it his preferred residence in the 14th century, writing, "The illustrious source of the Sorgue, famous for itself long ago, became even more famous by my long stay and my songs." (Petrarch, Seniles, X, 2).
The poet left in 1353 after his son's death. The village was razed shortly afterward by bandits, who withdrew at the sight of the intimidating episcopal seat. A museum stands on the spot of Petrarch's house today, and the town is twinned with Arquà Petrarca, where the poet died. Following this attack, the village and valley fell into oblivion. Thought of as a wild place, it was avoided through the 16th and 17th centuries. Vaucluse was again popularized by a duel between the famous Honore Gabriel Riqueti and Louis-Francois de Galliffet. A letter published by Riqueti brought fame to the area again, and a column was built to honour Petrarch in the eighteenth century.
In 1946, Jacques Cousteau and another diver were almost killed while searching for the bottom of the spring. An air compressor used to fill their tanks had taken in its own exhaust fumes and produced carbon monoxide—nearly killing them before they could return to the surface from a depth of approximately 100 metres.
Demographics
Historical population:
Places and monuments
* The principal point of interest is the source of the
Sorgue
The Sorgue is a river in Southeastern France lying between the foothills of the Alps and the Rhône. It is long. Its source is near the town of Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, Vaucluse department. It is the biggest spring in France and the fifth bigges ...
at the foot of a cliff 240 metres high: Its average flow is 22 m3 / second, the highest in France, and can attain 110 m3 after the snow melts. It wasn't until 1985 that the mystery of its origin was partially revealed: in effect, the lowest point is at -308m depth attained by a robot belonging to the Spelunking Society of Fontaine de Vaucluse. The spring is the only exit point of a subterranean basin of 1200 km2 that collects the water from Mount Ventoux, the Vaucluse mountains and from the Lure mountain.
* Ruins of the castle of the
Bishop of Cavaillon
The former French diocese of Cavaillon (''Lat.'' dioecesis Caballicensis) existed until the French Revolution as a diocese of the Comtat Venaissin, a fief of the Church of Rome. It was a member of the ecclesiastical province headed by the Metropol ...
* Ancient paper mill
* Museum of the Resistance
*
Petrarch
Francesco Petrarca (; 20 July 1304 – 18/19 July 1374), commonly anglicized as Petrarch (), was a scholar and poet of early Renaissance Italy, and one of the earliest humanists.
Petrarch's rediscovery of Cicero's letters is often credited ...
The following people are related to Fontaine-de-Vaucluse:
*
Veranus of Cavaillon
Saint Veranus of Cavaillon (french: Véran, ''Vrain''; it, Verano) (died c. 590) was a French saint, with a cultus in Italy. He was born at Vaucluse and was bishop of Cavaillon.
Gregory of Tours writes of miracles performed by Veranus, includi ...
File:Castle Fontaine de Vaucluse by JM Rosier.jpg, Ruins of the castle
File:Water by JM Rosier.jpg, The flowing of the water
File:Fontaine de Vaucluse jt02.jpg, Bishop of Cavaillon's castle, overhanging the village
File:La Sorgue shrouded in fog, Fontaine-de-Vaucluse.JPG, The Sorgue shrouded in fog
File:La Sorgue, Fontaine-de-Vaucluse.JPG, The Sorgue in Fontaine-de-Vaucluse
File:Musée-Bibliothèque François Pétrarque, Fontaine de Vaucluse, France.jpg, Museum and library dedicated to the italian poet Francesco Petrarca