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Unnamed and Unsigned
This nature-inspired bas relief sculpture was carved in the 1980s into the wall of what-was-then a mostly-deserted towpath along the Lot River in the south of France. Today, Daniel Monnier’s work – often referred to as Le Lot – is a magnificent drawcard on the now-popular walk between Bouziès and Saint-Cirq Lapopie.
The Lot is the longest tributary river in France. Its source is high in the Cévennes, from where it winds around 485 kilometres (301 mi) in a mostly westerly direction across south-central France, flowing into the Garonne near Aiguillon in the southwest.
From the Middle Ages until into the 20th century, the river was the cheapest and easiest way to transport goods. Gabarres (barges) carried iron ore, coal, grains, tobacco, and wine down river to Bordeaux. The return trips up-river carried salt, stockfish, and manufactured goods.
Trips upriver were undertaken with the aid of teams of men or draught animals who walked on shore alongside the river on towpaths (chemins de halage) with ropes, pulling the barges upstream against the current.
Just outside the tiny hamlet of Bouziès, about a thirty minute drive from Cahors, limestone cliffs rise steeply from the water on both sides of the river – making walking along the banks at water-level impossible. In a feat of engineering between 1843 and 1847, almost a kilometre (0.62 miles) of 2-metre (6.6 foot) high, open-sided tunnels were carved out of the cliff, allowing haulage teams to pass. It is the only river towpath in France known to have been built this way.
Not so many years after the towpath was finished, the train arrived in Bouzies. Commercial shipping on the Lot stopped and the river was removed from the list of navigable waterways in 1926. The path became overgrown, and was more-or-less ignored until an artist from Toulouse – Daniel Monnier – found it while on a walking trip in 1984. He spent two years getting permits from various local authorities before commencing his self-funded bas relief that would be part of the natural scenery around it.
Today, Daniel Monnier’s semi-abstract representation of the river and its fauna, flora, rocks, fossils, and whirlpools is one of the highlights along the walk from the port of Bouziès and the medieval village of Saint-Cirq Lapopie.
I was staying with friends in nearby Cahors (see: Modern Life in a Medieval City). We parked near the start of the Chemin de Halage, with the intention of walking the full 3.5 km (2.2 mi) to Saint-Cirq Lapopie – but the weather was against us.
So, we walked out to the end of the Chemin de Halage and back to the car.
This decision allowed me more time to enjoy the wonderful sculptures along the way, the bas-relief on the towpath itself, and the scenery all around.
Grab an umbrella and come along!
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Bouziès Parking Lot
It was a beautiful autumn day when we reached the parking lot at the start of our walk. The white and ochre limestone cliffs rise steeply on the other side of the river.
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Overgrown Waymarker in the Green
“Dry Dock”
Before the arrival of the railways, this was an important port. In 1990, the river was reopened to recreational boats. You can rent pleasure boats and houseboats in nearby Cahors, or can put your own boat to water either side of this area.
Lines and Curves
I love the lines and textures of old wooden boats.
Grass Growing
This particular boat has been out ot the river for a while!
L’Acanthe – Acanthus
Acanthus are a flowering plant native to the Mediterranean Basin.
On the Path
The sky closes in as we start out on the flat and even path from the carpark to the Halage.
Les Herculéennes De Bouzies
Installed here in 2017, The Herculeans are a large work in locally-sourced wood and stone. According to the long interpretation on a nearby sign-board, the artist, sculptor, and architect, Laurent Reynés, sees the work as “contemporary Neolithic art” providing a direct link between Nature and Man.
The Woods
“Borne 1989”
This elegant sculpture by artist Daniel Monnier is carved into a boundary stone from the nearby hamlet of La Trapelle.
Into the Cliffs
Soon, the limestone cliffs close in …
Look Up!
… and rise up all around.
Cave in the Cliff
The limestone is pockmarked with caves and crevices – many which have been used; the Pech Merle Caves near here contain Paleolithic drawings which are over 29,000 years old.
Rain on the River
Ganil Lock
To control water flow on the river, 75 weirs and a number of locks were built in the early 1800s. The manual lock in the distance has been restored and is in regular use.
“Le Lot”
This beautiful and surreal bas relief depicting the life of the river took Daniel Monnier nine months across 1987 to 1989 to sculpt.
Along the Towpath
The carved-out cliff is rough-hewn either side of of the bas relief.
Walkers on the Path
The path leads away from the river and back into the green.
Pleasure Boat on the Lot
Cottage in the Mists
The weather deteriorates, so we turn around …
Daniel Monnier’s Le Lot
… and walk back – appreciating the bas relief from the other side.
Wildflowers
M Le Mammouth
“Le fabuleux voyage – À la recherche de la lumière….” “The fabulous journey – In search of the light…”
Some of the Prehistoric drawings in the nearby Pech Merle Caves include depictions of mammoths. This one was sculpted by Eric Manes-Malmon and Yvan Mathis in 2013, and installed here in 2016.
Passing the sculptures again means we are almost back at the car.
And the rain continues!
Until next time …
Pictures: 27September2024
