- Source: Pile of Saint-Lary
The Pile of Saint-Lary is a Gallo-Roman stone tower, also known as a pile, located in Saint-Lary, in the Gers department of France. It has been listed as a Monument historique since 1875.
Location
The pile is situated on the top of a hill, within a wooded area, approximately 700 meters from the village of Saint-Lary, separated by the D 930 road.
Description
The Pile of Saint-Lary is one of the most remarkable piles in the Gers region, notable for retaining much of its original facing, along with decorative elements. It is a quadrangular structure standing at 10.25 meters tall and measuring 3.90 meters on each side. The upper part features an eastern-facing niche, now missing its vault, but originally semi-circular in plan and likely vaulted in a semi-dome. This niche is framed by two pilasters beneath a prominent cornice.
Below the niche, the carefully constructed small stone blocks present decorative elements, including two vertical diamond shapes formed by smaller stone diamonds, above a triangular pediment filled with small horizontal diamonds. Below this, a rectangular mosaic panel comprises hexagonal and square tiles in contrasting colors. The north and southwest faces are composed of dry stone.
The pile of Saint-Lary is classified as a Monument historique (France) and has been listed since 1875.
References
= Bibliography
=Pascale Clauss-Balty (2016). Les piles funéraires gallo-romaines du Sud-Ouest de la France. Archaia. Pau: Presses Universitaires de Pau et des Pays de l'Adour. p. 231. ISBN 978-2-3531-1063-6..
Jacques Lapart; Catherine Petit (1993). Le Gers. Carte archéologique de la Gaule. Vol. 32. Paris: Académie des inscriptions et belles-lettres. p. 354. ISBN 2-8775-4025-1..
Philippe Lauzun (1898). "Inventaire général des piles gallo-romaines du sud-ouest de la France et plus particulièrement du département du Gers". Bulletin Monumental. LXIII. Caen: Henri Delesques imprimeur-éditeur: 5–68. doi:10.3406/bulmo.1898.11144..
External links
Media related to Pile de Saint-Lary at Wikimedia Commons