"Ferme dite " maison du patrimoine bornandin ""
Monument
"Ferme dite " maison du patrimoine bornandin "", located in Le Grand-Bornand (Département 74), is a medieval landmark built in the Middle Ages. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Period
- Medieval (11th-15th century)
- Location
- Le Grand-Bornand, Département 74, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 45.9414, 6.4312
- Mérimée Reference
- PA74000008
In the heart of Le Grand-Bornand, this 19th-century spruce farmhouse reveals the Alpine art of living in all its authenticity: stacked log architecture, majestic hayloft and Reblochon cheese-making all under the same roof.
History
Nestling in the Bornes valley in Haute-Savoie, the Maison du Patrimoine Bornandin is much more than just an old farmhouse: it is a living, intact testimony to Savoyard rural architecture as it has been practised for centuries in this high mountain region. Built in the first half of the 19th century on a cleverly sloping site, it embodies the perfect symbiosis between the constraints of the alpine environment and the ingenuity of the farmers. What makes this building truly unique is the absolute coherence of its design. Every space, every architectural detail responds to an implacable logic dictated by daily life in the mountains: the stable heated naturally by the animal's heat, the barn-window accessible on the same level from the slope above, and even the ingenious "mare's chute" that carries the hay directly from the barn to the animals below. The house is not just inhabited, it is designed as a functional organism in which each room communicates with the others. The visit immerses visitors in the intimacy of a Savoyard farming family spanning several generations. We wander from the "cozna" - the central kitchen and soul of the house - to the "peille", the living room where Reblochon cheese was once made, before discovering the laundry-drying galleries running around the façade, or the astonishing threshing floor known as the "oëtre". Each local term is a reminder that you are entering a cultural universe in its own right, that of the Bornes region. The setting of Le Grand-Bornand completes the immersion: surrounded by the peaks of the Aravis mountains, the village retains an authentic character that echoes the architecture of the farm. Listed as a Historic Monument in 2007, the Maison du Patrimoine Bornandin (Bornandin Heritage Centre) is now an invaluable museographic space, an essential reference point for anyone wishing to understand the profound identity of this corner of the Savoyard Pre-Alps.
Architecture
The farmhouse is distinguished by its load-bearing structure of solid spruce, built using the stacking technique of squared timbers, joined at the corners by notches cut in thirds. The walls are reinforced with vertical pieces of wood that are keyed together, ensuring the rigidity of the whole structure in the face of the considerable snow loads of Alpine winters. This construction system, typical of the Bornes region, gives the farmhouse remarkable solidity while allowing it to adapt optimally to extreme climatic conditions. The base is made of rough stone bonded with lime and sand mortar, providing a stable foundation on the sloping terrain. The sloping layout determines the vertical tripartite organisation of the farmhouse: on the lower level, directly accessible from downstream, are the cow shed, the sheepfold and the cellars. The middle level houses the living areas - central kitchen, living room, pantry and master bedroom - served by a peripheral gallery used for drying laundry and leading to the outside toilets (the "cacatis"). The upper level is entirely given over to the barn, divided into the "oëtre" (threshing floor), the "soli" (hayloft) and the "solarets" (hay dryers) that encircle the volume on three sides. At the centre of this vast framework is the main pillar, known as the "donkey's point", the true structural backbone of the building. The wooden tile roof - the "tavaillons" - is one of the most characteristic and spectacular elements of the whole. These slats of split spruce are held in place by transverse poles weighted down with stones, which also act as snow guards, preventing avalanches of accumulated snow from destabilising the structure. This technical solution, born of experience accumulated on Alpine slopes, is both functional and aesthetically remarkable.
Related Figures
Familles paysannes bornandinnes occupantes depuis 1730, dont les pratiques agricoles et fromagères ont façonné chaque espace de la fermeCharpentiers locaux du pays des Bornes, maîtres de la technique d'empilage de madriers à encoches à tiers-boisArtisans tavailleurs, spécialistes de la confection des tuiles de bois (tavaillons) en épicéa fenduProducteurs de reblochon de la vallée, dont la ferme constitue l'un des derniers témoins architecturaux de la fabrication fromagère domestiqueConservateurs du patrimoine savoyard, initiateurs de la procédure d'inscription aux Monuments Historiques aboutie en 2007
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is "Ferme dite " maison du patrimoine bornandin "" located?
"Ferme dite " maison du patrimoine bornandin "" is located in Le Grand-Bornand, Département 74 department, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, France.
When was "Ferme dite " maison du patrimoine bornandin "" built?
"Ferme dite " maison du patrimoine bornandin "" dates back to a period built in the Middle Ages (11th-15th century).
Is "Ferme dite " maison du patrimoine bornandin "" open to visitors?
"Ferme dite " maison du patrimoine bornandin "" is currently closed to visitors.