Timeline

Heritage classified

Origin and history

The Pont de la Pierre is a medieval building located in Bellac, Haute-Vienne, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. Built in the 13th and 14th centuries, it crosses the Vincou and connects the two banks of the city. This back-of-ass road bridge is distinguished by its three arches, two of which have broken main tracks and two secondary ones, one broken and the other in the middle of the belt. Its primitive appearance has been preserved, with characteristic fore-beeks and stern-beeks, including a central fore-beek in mitre surmounted by a wooden cross.

The Stone Bridge was listed as historic monuments on May 23, 1969, recognizing its heritage value. Today it belongs to the municipality of Bellac and retains a typical structure of medieval bridges, with a donkey-back profile whose top is aligned with the second arch. Architectural details, such as the seven-foot advanced fore-beeks on the upstream side and flat after-beeks on the downstream side, illustrate the construction techniques of the era.

This monument illustrates the importance of bridges in urban organization and exchanges in the Middle Ages. In Bellac, as in many medieval cities, these works facilitated movement, commerce and links between neighbourhoods separated by streams. The Vincou, though modest, played a key role in local life, and the bridge of the Stone, by its robustness and longevity, is a tangible testimony.

Available sources, including the Merimée and Structurae bases, as well as Monumentum's descriptions, confirm its status as a protected monument and its architectural interest. Its approximate address, 9 Faubourg du Pont de la Pierre, and its Insee code (87011) place it precisely in the urban landscape of Bellac, Haute-Vienne.

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