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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The lake and the Barbegal mills, located in Fontvieille near Arles (Bouches-du-Rhône), constitute a Roman hydraulic milling complex dating from the beginning of the second century. Partially ranked in 1886, this site is described as "the greatest concentration of mechanical power in the ancient world". It was fed by two aqueducts from the Alpilles sources: the South Waterway (Caparon, 10 km) and the North Waterway (Saint-Rémy, 38 km), converging towards a basin in Fontvieille before reaching Arles for an additional 12 km.

The milling complex operated an 18-metre elevation through two sets of 8 wheels with augets, each operating a mill for an estimated 4.5 tons of daily flour – enough to feed the 12,500 inhabitants of Arles. A 2018 study suggests that this flour was also used to make bread for boat crews. The excavations of the 1990s reversed the hypothesis of a production reserved for export or military annone, originally proposed by Fernand Benoit and Henry-Paul Eydoux.

The remains, still visible today, include two parallel aqueduct bridges crossing the valley of the Arcs, as well as the milling rooms organized around a central staircase. The total power of the system was estimated at 50 kW (3 kW per mill), thanks to a water flow of between 240 and 1,000 litres/second. The site, functional until the third century, probably belonged to the owner of the Roman villa next to the Mérindole. A wheel was returned between 2017 and 2020 by a multidisciplinary committee, exposed to the Château de Montauban.

Gallo-Roman engineer Q. Candidius Benignus, a member of the body of the carpenters of Arles, was proposed by Fernand Benoit as a possible designer of the complex, although recent excavations did not confirm this attribution. His sarcophagus had an inscription praising his technical skills. The site, partially classified in 1937, illustrates Roman hydraulic engineering and its adaptation to the economic needs of a prosperous city like Arles.

Today, Barbegal's remains offer an exceptional witness to ancient industrial techniques. The bypass channel, the falls and the foundations of the mills remain accessible, supplemented by models and reconstitutions (such as the exposed wheel). This complex prefigures medieval and modern hydraulic plants, while emphasizing the key role of Arles as an economic hub under the Roman Empire.

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