Timeline

Heritage classified

Origin and history

The Bastide de Montgolfier-la-Tour-du-Pin is a rural property located in the 14th arrondissement of Marseille, at the edge of the Merlan and Sainte-Marthe districts. Built in the mid-19th century, it embodies the architecture of Provencal bastides, combining a main residence, agricultural buildings (farm, barn), a landscaped park, two windmills and a gazebo. This type of domain reflects the evolution of farms under the influence of modern models of the time, combining cereal production and landscape aesthetics.

The two windmills, the so-called windmills of Vento, are integrated into a model farm transformed into a park. They were of a tower type and without a mechanism, they would have been used as flour mills before being fitted out as a gazebo. The estate, partly listed as a historical monument in 1993 (façades, roofs, park, mills and gazebo), is now owned by the City of Marseille. It houses an educational farm, illustrating the contemporary re-appropriation of rural heritage for educational and cultural purposes.

The designation of historic monuments in 1993 preserved the emblematic elements of the site, while emphasizing its role in local history. The bastide, with its outbuildings and its park, bears witness to the agricultural practices of the 19th century in Provence, while its transformation into a public space reflects the current challenges of transmitting heritage. The precise coordinates (2 traverse Cade) and its communal status make it an accessible place, anchored in the Marseille landscape.

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