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Origin and history

Lirate Wood Chibotte is a former vineyard hut, called Tsabone in the 19th century, located in the Dolaizon Valley, in the commune of Vals-near-le-Puy (Haute-Loire). Built between the 17th and 19th centuries, it served as a temporary shelter for local winemakers, nicknamed Ponots. Its dry stone architecture, typical of the region, includes a warhead vault and a flat facade with a basalt lintel. Enlisted for historical monuments in 1986, it illustrates the adaptation of populations to a volcanic territory, where local materials (breast, basalt) were systematically reused.

These huts are part of a wider network of Mediterranean dry stone constructions linked to a subsistence economy. Their growth between the 18th and 19th centuries coincided with the fragmentation of the wineries, as evidenced by the comparison of Napoleonic and modern cadastres. Lirate's wood, partially embedded in a slope, has architectural features: symmetrical corbellations, interior niche, and traces of an articulated door. Agricultural objects (cow iron, barrel hoops) were found there in 1979, demonstrating its practical use.

Local scholar Albert Boudon-Lashermes (XIXth century) used the term "ligure" to refer to these buildings, originally named Tsabone by winemakers. Since 2011, the town hall of Vals-near-le-Puy has valued this heritage through a trail of the chibottes, integrating the log cabin of Lirate with a tourist route highlighting these remains of a disappeared rural life. The 1986 protection and recent development underscore its heritage importance, both ethnological and architectural.

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