Guide Perigord_version anglaise

©Titia Carrizey-Jasick

Jean-Max-Touron, owner of prehistoric and troglodytic sites

“My parents steeped me in history since the cradle.Then I was lucky enough to meet Abbot Breuil.Growing up, I naturally became interested in the origins of man and in cave dwellings.I wouldn’t say that I am the owner of these sites as such,even though they are indeed mine,the Cro-Magnon Shelter D ,and the Roc de Cazelle G ,both of which I restored.I see myself more of a temporary caretaker of Heritage and History.The sites such as Les Eyzies and its majestic setting are eternal! Here under the cliffs,we realise the millennia that come between us and our ancestors,and we reconnect with our roots.” “Simply a caretaker of History”

©Titia Carrizey-Jasick

A LITTLE BACKGROUND

Outside Sireuil in the Beune Valley, the site of Commarque H  , bears in its rocks and in its walls the trace of human intervention over the centuries. Recent restoration projects have done nothing to spoil the site’s fascinating atmosphere. The mysteries of centuries unfold; from the first troglodytic shelters to the narrow streets of a fortified medieval castrum, and then, from stone keep to a knights’ residence. After a walk in the surrounding woodland, the vision of the settlement is just unforgettable. New in 2016, after a year of renovation, the tour of the main building’s living quarters. Commarque, the Layers of Time

Our Ancestor Cro-Magnon

© Bertrand Rieger

In 1868, during the construction of the neighbouring railway on the way into the village of Eyzies, five human skeletons were discovered under the Cro-Magnon rock shelter, on the road towards Tayac.“Cro” means “hollow” in Occitan and “Magnon” is probably the name of the landowner. Despite his age—35,000 years—the Man of Cro-Magnon or more precisely “Homo sapiens sapiens”… is just like us!

© Bertrand Rieger

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24+1 VILLAGES OF PÉRIGORD