Gallo-Roman Villa, Loupian

A couple of weeks ago we took a short drive to the small village of Loupian, the site of a Gallo-Roman villa from the 5th century AD. The drive there was lovely, passing through small villages, vineyards & pastures. The countryside & the layout of roads hasn't changed much since Roman times. The villa system in place during the late Roman Empire was essentially the precursor of medieval castles. Large, strongly defended villas were surrounded by vineyards, fields & peasants, & each villa was practically self-sufficient. In times of trouble everyone would go to the villa & defend its walls. In many cases the owners of these villas became hugely wealthy. This villa, discovered in the mid-20th century by a farmer who, when plowing his fields, repeatedly came across colored rocks. These turned out to be tessera -- mosaic tiles from elaborate floor designs.

We were given a small discount off the entry fee because we had visited the nearby Abbey of Valmagne & had our ticket stubs with us. You enter the site via a small museum, & your guide walks you across a small field to the actual villa, which is now indoors to protect the site. After entering the building the tour takes you along walkways, both on the same level as the floors, & above it so you can look down on the villa. It's a great vantage point, but made photography a bit challenging. There are some photos below, but it's difficult to give any sense of perspective or show where the mosaics are in relation to one another.

Being off-season, the guided tours (the only way to view the villa) were only offered in French, but we were able to follow most of what our guide said. If you are in the area, we would highly recommend a visit to the villa at Loupian.