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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The farm Arnaud is a farm located in the village of Chacornac, in the commune of Cayres, Haute-Loire (region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes). Built in the 17th century, it perfectly illustrates the traditional rural habitat of the southwestern Velay plateaus, characterized by the use of local volcanic stone. Its simple plan combines a rectangular house with a large agricultural building serving both barn and barn, organized around a central courtyard.

The interior layout was preserved in its original state. The barn, accessible by an external staircase, overlooks a stable whose entrance is surmounted by a projection fenil, supported by a cradle vault forming a covered passage. This passage also serves the house via a side door, as well as a soy under the staircase. At the back of the house, a vaulted room and a fireplace lead to a small secret hiding place, used during the French Revolution.

Classified as a historical monument by order of 10 September 1990, the farm Arnaud is distinguished by its protected elements: the barn-stable with its vaulted porch, the house of residence ( vaulted room, fireplace and secret room), as well as the wall of enclosure. Its architecture reflects the agricultural practices and defensive needs of the rural populations of Velay in the modern era, where farms had to combine functionality and protection.

Robert Chamonard (1967)'s studies on the agrarian structures of Western Velay underline the importance of this type of construction in the organization of plateaus between Cayres and Loudes. The farm Arnaud, by its exceptional state of conservation, offers a material testimony of the lifestyles and techniques of rural construction of the 17th and 18th centuries in Auvergne.

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