Roselyne Deschamps sundial - Les Alberts

Name: Roselyne Deschamps sundial - Les Alberts
Address: D201 Les Alberts - commune de Montgenèvre, Val-des-Prés, 05100
Telephone: 04 92 20 02 20
Price range: Free access.

Val-des-Prés

This dial had a hectic history. Originally painted by Zuarbula and repainted in 1954, we see only the original dial, the exotic bird. This dial also has an originality: its motto in French and in three.

Description

This dial includes all the attributes of the weaver’s trade:

- the wagtail holding a linen thread in its beak, delimiting the time table of the dial
- the time lines represented by knitting needles
- the spinning wheel that was once used to spin wool, hemp, and linen,
- and the flax flower once cultivated in the valley to make fabric

It takes up a tradition that was once very followed: at the top right, we can see a wagtail resting on a stone painted trompe l'œil. On this stone, it says: «W R D». In fact, there are two interlaced V’s, and that means: "Vive Roselyne D", long live Roselyne! This tradition comes to us from Italy, where the 2 intertwined mean 'Evviva'.

We will also notice the pretty blue and gray facade; this one was painted at the same time as the dial, with the stones in trompe l'œil at the corner of the wall.