MENTON · ROYA VALLEY

The Roya Valley

A valley of borders, salt routes, crossings and memory. The Roya brings together Alpine villages, historic roads, pastoral culture, sacred art and one of the most remarkable archaeological landscapes in the Alps.

SALT ROAD · LASCARIS · BORDER VILLAGE

Tende

Tende is one of those Alpine villages where history remains immediately visible. Perched on the High Salt Road and the Royal Road towards the Col de Tende and Piedmont, it was for centuries a strategic point between the Mediterranean and the Alps. Salt trade, tolls and transit duties explain the town’s importance within Alpine communications. The village still preserves traces of the Lascaris period, including fortifications, gateways and remains of the former castle. Later, the history of the county was also shaped by René, known as the Bastard of Savoy, an important figure in local history.

NOTRE-DAME-DES-FONTAINES · BRIGASQUE SHEEP · BORDER MEMORY

La Brigue

La Brigue is a place I deeply love: whenever I travel through the Roya Valley, I always try to make time for a detour. Walking through its narrow streets, you can still feel the importance the village once had, with its medieval atmosphere and the sense of a remote place that was nevertheless central to the history of these mountains. Its most extraordinary monument is Notre-Dame-des-Fontaines, a masterpiece of Alpine sacred art. La Brigue is also closely linked to the Brigasque sheep, a local breed historically associated with pastoral life, wool and, still today, a living cheese-making tradition. In 1947, together with Tende, it became part of France following the Treaty of Paris and the official plebiscite.

Detail of the fresco cycle at the Notre-Dame-des-Fontaines sanctuary — Notre-Dame-des-Fontaines · frescoes

MONT BÉGO · ROCK ENGRAVINGS · CASTÉRINO

Valley of Wonders

The Valley of Wonders is one of the most extraordinary sites in the entire Alpine arc. Around Mont Bégo lies a vast archaeological landscape marked by thousands of rock engravings that bear witness to prehistoric communities and their symbolic world. Engraved rocks, mountain lakes and high-altitude terrain form a unique ensemble between nature and ancient memory. Castérino is one of the best-known gateways to the Valley of Wonders and Fontanalba.

SOURCES

Tende · Menton Riviera & Merveilles ↗La Brigue · Menton Riviera & Merveilles ↗Mont Bégo · gravures rupestres ↗