Probable building dating vers 1915 (≈ 1915)
Go back around that date.
1947
Final closure
Final closure 1947 (≈ 1947)
Last limousine tiles with manual drying.
4e quart XIXe siècle
Initial construction
Initial construction 4e quart XIXe siècle (≈ 1987)
Estimated building foundation period.
28 septembre 2009
Historical Monument
Historical Monument 28 septembre 2009 (≈ 2009)
Full site registration.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
La tiillerie - briquetterie en toute (cad. ZY 26): inscription by decree of 28 September 2009
Key figures
Information non disponible - No character cited
The source text does not mention any names.
Origin and history
The former Aupeix tile-brickery, located in Saint-Hilaire-les-Places in New Aquitaine, dates from the last quarter of the 19th century. Although the buildings seem to date back to around 1915, their design reflects the local artisanal methods of the end of the previous century. This site, never mechanized, illustrates the traditional practices of making tiles and bricks, typical of small businesses in Puycheny.
The tiles stand out as the last in Limousin to have kept a drying area in 1947, the year of its closure, and to practice manual moulding. Its production included flat or curved tiles, full bricks and bread oven tiles. The layout of buildings, organised around a central area surrounded by dryers and a storage shed adjacent to the oven, forms a coherent and representative set of modest establishments of the period.
Ranked Historic Monument by order of 28 September 2009, the Aupeix tile-brickery testifies to a lost craftsmanship. Its architecture and horizontal operation, from storage to cooking, offer a unique overview of pre-industrial techniques. Today transformed into a workshop-museum under the name of Puycheny Earth Museum, it allows to discover this technical and social heritage limousin.
The location of the site, although documented (official address at Saint-Hilaire-les-Places, code INSEE 87150), has a geographical accuracy that is considered satisfactory (level 6/10). This relative impreciseness may be explained by its isolation or by changes in the local urban fabric. The site remains an important marker of the rural industrial history of Haute-Vienne.
Unlike other tiles in the region, Aupeix never adopted mechanization, thus preserving ancestral methods until its closure. This choice, probably linked to the small size of the company, makes it a case study for technical historians. The archives mention its activity until 1947, when it finally ceased its production, marking the end of an era for local crafts.
The present museum not only showcases the tools and manufacturing processes, but also the social role of these tiles in rural communities. These sites were often economic hubs, providing essential building materials for local habitats and infrastructure. Their gradual disappearance in the 20th century reflects industrial change and centralization of production.
