Gordes
The Village des Bories, dry stone on the slopes above Gordes
On the slopes of the Monts de Vaucluse, stones cleared from farmland were used to build a hamlet of huts, walls and enclosures facing the Luberon.
A dry-stone hamlet on the slopes above Gordes
Four kilometres from Gordes, the Village des Bories stands in the Savournins area, on the slopes of the Monts de Vaucluse. The site brings together rounded huts, walls, enclosures and narrow passageways. Limestone connects one structure to the next and gives the hamlet its unity.
The buildings are not all alike. Some have low, elongated roofs, while others rise in narrower forms. Walls define spaces for movement and work, and openings are few. This dense layout shows that the site amounted to more than a scattering of shelters in the scrubland.
The countryside around Gordes contains nearly four hundred dry-stone structures, standing alone or in groups. The Village des Bories is the best known, but it belongs to a much broader landscape shaped by farming on the hillsides.
Clearing the fields to build walls and huts
In the 17th and 18th centuries, bringing new plots into cultivation meant removing large quantities of stone from the soil. Clearing the land made room for wheat, olive trees and vines. The limestone blocks remained on site: they were piled into heaps, incorporated into walls and enclosures, and then used to build the huts.
Dry-stone construction uses no mortar. Blocks are selected and fitted according to their shape so that their own weight keeps the structure stable. To close the roof, each course projects slightly farther inwards than the one below. This corbelling gradually narrows the opening until large slabs can cover it.
No timber frame supports these roofs. Their balance depends on the thickness of the walls, the angle of the stones and the care taken in laying them. The roofs shed water outwards, while narrow openings limit weak points in the masonry.
Sheepfolds, oven and threshing floor: a farming settlement
The word “borie” is now commonly used in Provence for these huts. Local people spoke more simply of “cabanes”, or huts, and the hamlet itself was formerly known as Les Cabanes.
The buildings served several purposes. Some sheltered farmers or shepherds working far from the village of Gordes. Others housed animals, tools or part of the harvest. The site also included sheepfolds, a pigsty, a cellar, a bread oven and a threshing floor.
Together, these spaces reveal a rural life organised around working the land. The huts did not form a permanently inhabited village comparable to Gordes, but a group associated with farming and temporary use. Walls protected plots and animals, enclosures separated activities, and passageways linked the buildings.
As the land was worked less regularly, the huts gradually lost their purpose. Vegetation spread over the walls and the structures deteriorated. Several remained hidden for many years beneath oaks, brambles and scrub.
Pierre Viala and the restoration of the Village des Bories
In the 1960s, Pierre Viala discovered the complex when it was still largely overgrown. A writer, actor and traveller, he acquired the plots and began restoring the hamlet with the help of masons from Gordes.
The work extended beyond the huts themselves. Walls had to be cleared, passageways found again and the relationship between the different buildings restored. The project made the site's organisation legible once more, from roofed structures to enclosures and working areas.
The Village des Bories, including its connecting walls, was listed as a Historic Monument on 17 October 1977. The restoration also received an award from the Académie d'architecture. Now owned by the municipality of Gordes, the site preserves the traces of two histories: that of the farmers who used stones cleared from the soil, and that of those who uncovered and restored the structures.
From the Village des Bories to Gordes and the Luberon
The Village des Bories lies on the slopes of the Monts de Vaucluse, facing the Luberon massif. This setting explains the abundance of stone, the gradual expansion of cultivated land and the hundreds of huts scattered across the countryside around Gordes.
The visit offers another perspective on Gordes. The hilltop village has houses gathered around its château and church; the Savournins site reveals structures connected with farming beyond the historic centre. Farther north, Sénanque Abbey expresses another relationship between architecture, cultivation and relief within the same landscape.
The Village des Bories can therefore form part of a day exploring Gordes, Sénanque and the villages of the Luberon. Its walls show how stones removed from fields were used to divide plots, shelter people and animals, and shape a rural landscape that remains visible today.
Our selection
Bed and breakfasts around Gordes to extend your getaway
Around Gordes, bed and breakfasts provide a convenient base for exploring the Village des Bories, Sénanque and nearby villages from the Monts de Vaucluse or the Calavon valley. The portal favours direct links to owners' websites, helping you plan a stay close to the landscape.