Uses of Vernon stone

This stone, for a long time considered as more prestigious than others, was used in Normandy for the delicate parts of monuments - in particular carved parts and other frail ornaments - while builders used to take Caumont stone (or any other local stone) that was more common and cheaper, for the main parts, as was the case for Rouen cathedral and many Norman Abbeys. Thus, dealing with the Lady Chapel in Rouen cathedral, A Meyer (Histoire de Vernon) writes about the pinnacles made of Vernon stone that "they are so slender that they look like silver and gold ornaments and seem to have been made with metal, not stone."

Here we can list Evreux cathedral, the churches in Les Andelys, Ecouis ( and its magnificent statues), Louviers, Le Neubourg, Pont-de-l'Arche, Vernon, the château of Gaillon , that of de Vernon and Bonport Abbey.
Farther away, outside the Département of Eure, Rouen cathedral, Saint-Ouen's, also in Rouen, the château of Anet, the church in Mantes and, in Paris, the rose of Sainte Chapelle, Notre-Dame bridge, some parts of the Louvres and of Palais Royal as well as many other buildings. Farther still, in Chartres cathedral where, for the outside carvings including those of the porches, while Chantilly stone was used for the facade, Vernon stone was preferred for the north and south aisles.

Photo : Partenaires de l'Office de Tourisme

From left to right and from top to bottom: Collegiate church in Ecouis (Holy Woman) Collegiate church in Mantes, cathedral of Rouen, Bonport Abbey, château of Gaillon, , Palais Royal in Paris, cathedral of Chartres (Visitation, north porch) Click to enlarge

In the 20th century, with the growing use of new building materials such as concrete, Vernon stone fell into disuse, especially when the town was re-built after World War II.

However a firm goes on working this stone for the restoration of historic buildings and also for a small private local market.

Map of the quarries [8]

 

The 1678 survey

A document dated 1678 enables us to know better how our stone was used in past centuries.

At the height of the construction of Versailles palace, architects and quarry masters were sent by Colbert (the Minister in charge of the King's buildings) to examine the existing quarries and monuments within a radius of 100 kilometres around Versailles so as to try and discover new stone resources that could be used to build the palace.

The inspectors arrived in Vernon on August 25th, 1678.
Here are some extracts from their report that begins with Port Villez quarry, south of Vernon on the right bank:
"We went up to the top of the hill where the quarry is. It opens towards the river and looks north. We reckon that the ground of this quarry is about 120 to 140 ft above the river level. The opening is quite large, the ceiling is about 12 feet above the entrance level. The first bed rests on a vein of boulders two feet above the ground. This bed, named 'sound', is 2 or 3 feet thick. [...] There is another one, though a little less hard, also providing large white stones, with a few flint stones, like the one below. The sample is marked YY. "

Carrière de Port-Villez quarry : outside ca. 1918 and map [8,9]

Then the inspectors crossed the Seine to the right bank.

"We went to Vernonnet which lies at the other end of the bridge [...] We saw a quarry named la Carrière du Bassin but it is not worked […] From there, we went to the top of the Hill (la Montagne) in a quarry near the Hermitage called the Large Yard where Nicolas le Cœur works. Its opening is estimated to be 180 ft above the river level. The sound bed is on the ground of the quarry and is 3 feet thick. It is quite white, with fine grain and seems to contain fewer flint stones than the stones that we saw at Port Villez. The samples are marked &&. At the far end of the quarry, we saw a stone already hewn out of the same bed , it was 15 feet long and 9 wide; the sample is marked & ~ B."

[10]

The inspectors also visited the monuments built with this stone, for instance the church of the Penitents " built not very long ago with stones from the nearby quarries, that we found neither well chosen nor well used , being neither the hardest ones nor the best quality , because the workers take the softest ones to save labour." The other buildings in Vernon found no favour in their eyes: " the Franciscan church , built in the time of Saint Louis [mid 13th c.] , is made of the same local stone but ill jointed, […] the stones of the Tower of the castle […] are from various origins and beds, they are irregular and the layers have different heights."

As to Our Lady Collegiate church... " We went back into town where we saw the church of Our Lady, the choir of which was built long ago by the English with Vernon stone, hard but ill-chosen and very badly used . The nave, that was erected long after, in the way we used to build 150 years ago, is also made of Vernon stone, but better chosen and better used. […] As to the outside of the church, the stones are neither well chosen nor well drafted and set."       Photos : Partenaires de l'Office de Tourisme

The conclusion is far from positive:
"We noticed that in all the buildings in Vernon they had never cared to chose the proper stones, either because they had not discovered the best beds yet or because the would use the softest stones, which were easier to carve, but which , as we noticed , were of poor quality and easily damaged."

The architects then went to Gaillon where they visited the Chateau, almost entirely built with Vernon stone. But if some parts were "quite damaged in several places […] considerably worn and eaten away" in other places the stones are "covered with very delicate ornaments in a perfect state of preservation."

Colbert's inspectors also went through Pont de l'Arche then Rouen before going to Chartres via Anet and Dreux. We can, for instance quote what they found at Bonport abbey, just outside Pont de l'Arche:   left: Bonport Abbey. right: Château of Gaillon Photos : Partenaires de l'Office de Tourisme

"We also visited Bonport Abbey, about a quarter of a league away from Pont de l'Arche. We noticed that the lower part of second gate of the yard is made of Vernon stone while the upper part is make of Saint-Leu stone which remains well preserved. The whole church is made of Vernon stone as well as the old constructions of the monastery: several are in ruins and we noticed that stones are mingled , so that some of them are fine and in good condition, and others are cracked, chipped and decayed."

 

Qualities of stone

What to conclude from all this? The same and unique name 'Vernon stone' hides several qualities of stone, that are different either from one quarry to the next or even inside the same quarry, in which different beds - even from the same geological period - can yield very different stone.

Most of the Vernon quarries comprise four layers or beds between the quarry ceiling and the ground.
At the top, a 2-metre thick bed is composed of 'brié', a soft and frost-fracturable stone, of little interest especially as it cannot be used as ashlar.
Once this bed is removed, the difference in hardness with the lower part tells the quarrier that he has reached the 2nd bed, the 'gros lien', about 60 cm thick and made of hard stone. It is used for the parts of a construction that have to resist hard weather or wear: doorsteps, steps, bases, window sills, buttresses, cornices, for instance. Its resistance to grinding is 326 - 622 kg/cm².

The third bed is called 'petite hauteur'. It is separated from the upper one by a line of flint stone . Its grain is more even and it is slightly not so hard as 'gros lien', so that it can be used for very elaborately carved parts.
The fourth bed (90 cm thick), the 'franc ban' is softer. It can even be so soft (it is then called 'gras de Vernon' ) that it can be used only inside buildings). Its resistance to grinding is 146 to 154 kg /cm².

15	16
17	18

The quarries at the beginning of the 20th century [15, 16] and at the end [17, 18]
(Photos P. Tétillon - GPRV) - Click to enlarge

 

The quarries during World War II

During the last World War, Vernon, like many other cities, underwent a number of air raids. In June 1940, the Luftwaffe destroyed the town centre, then in 1944, in connexion with the landings in Normandy, the Allied air forces destroyed the bridges over the Seine, and in so doing severely hit the areas located near the river.
During both periods, the quarries dug into the hills were used as shelters by a lot of local inhabitants.
Jacques Leclerc, 19 years old then, remembers staying in the quarry of the Glacière (the ice-pit quarry) in June 1940:
"We remained a week in this cave, packed like sardines, with hardly anything to eat and to drink.[…] The older men, who had fought in the 1914-1918 war, kept telling us that we did not know what the Germans were like, that they would kill us all. We did not dare to go out, we were sure they were going to shoot us down if we left our hiding place…"

But it is really from May 1944 onward, after the first raids at the end of April, that the quarries were to shelter people for four long months. Two thirds of population of the suburb of Vernonnet found refuge in a dozen quarries. There was plenty of room there since a quarry like the one called Mont Roberge has an area of about ten hectares (~20 acres) with a network of 6 - 8 metre high galleries supported by more than 80 6*6m pillars.

Georges Séhet (. in Vernon est libérée, Vernon, 1940 1944, pages 26 27) describes life there :
"The access path had been freed from brambles and stones. On each side sheds had been built for the poultry and rabbits. Real artists had built arbours with branches and shrubs under which there were tables and benches. The first chamber of the cave, lit by outside light, was used as a refectory where the older women would do some mending. Behind, a darker chamber housed barrels with the water reserve. Farther still, the main chamber was used as the dormitory. Wooden beds had been set up there and each family had its own nook. In the evening candles and lamps would provide light, which could be quite picturesque.
Material conditions were precarious and life was hard."
The witness also writes:
"And it was a hard task for the women when they had to go shopping and for the men who, at midday and in the evening, were obliged to walk up there, often through the woods, in order to have board and lodging."

But in spite of everything, life gradually resumed as (almost) normal with business activities and with its miseries but also its joys.
"A grocer from Vernon had followed her customers into the Glacière quarry. She had transported there her counter, her scales and everything she had found in order to provide for the inhabitants of the cave."
We can also quote the unpublished diary of Sister Marie Armand who recalls an anecdote she lived in one of the quarries on August 19th :"Around 7pm, there arrived a woman lying on a stretcher; she was about to give birth. The conditions for the labour were precarious, neither any basin nor sterile compresses, no boiled water, little light.[…] Finally a beautiful baby boy was born at 11.23pm. His crying woke everyone up. They were all very happy that everything had gone well. A wooden box and some straw were his cradle."

Another quarry, that of Mortagne, has played a military part since 1939.

Map of a small part of Mortagne quarry in 1898

After being used as a depot by the French army, it was taken over by the Germans in 1943 and in 1944 they began converting the inside in order to shelter Rommel's headquarters, as the site at La Roche-Guyon (less than 10 km away) was thought not to be safe enough. On May 22nd, 1944, Rommel himself came to see how work was progressing.
A British officer's testimony, who visited the quarry at the end of the war, is clear:
"A number of wood partitions had been built inside; there was electricity, hot and cold water, refrigerators as well as bathrooms." (Hubert Essame, The 43rd Wessex division at war 1944 1945, page 112.)

Bought by the State in 1947, the quarry now houses soldiers: This large underground network shelters a powerful radio broadcasting station. The main mission of the 8th Transmission Regiment is to ensure radio connexion between the ministries of Defence and of Foreign Affairs and all the French embassies and consulates in the world.
What does the quarry look like today? Impossible to say, its access is forbidden as it is part of a classified military area.

 

Stone Carving Days

Vernon stone, a natural treasure to be preserved and a reputation to be developed.
This is why, since 2001, Club 41 has organised the Stone Carving Days in Vernon every other year.

Club 41 Club 41 gathers people from various professional, religious and cultural backgrounds in order to cultivate fellowship, tolerance and understanding without any reference to each member's social position. The Club centres on action, whether it is in the domain of sports, culture, citizenship, celebrations or charities so as to give the meetings a meaning and to forge bounds of friendship. The club is open to all those who share these same values and who are drawn towards others by open-mindedness; To contact Club 41, write to: Club 41 c/o AVEC Rue des Ecuries des Gardes - 27200 Vernon

The last Stone Carving Days, which took place on May 21st and 22nd, 2005, brought together about thirty stone carvers from France and Germany. They had to execute a carving having to do with Gothic style, the theme of the year: a capital, a gargoyle, Lady with Child, a Holy Water stoup, etc. A jury gave awards to the best works and Mrs Adeline Montassier, a carver at Touffreville la Corbeline (in Normandy) received the first prize for her 'Saint Michael and the Demon'.

The nextStone Carving Days, will take plave in May 2009 in various locations in vernon, but especially around Espace Philippe Auguste ( in the very city centre) where the stone carvers will be working

Saint Michael and the Demon - Click to enlarge	Click to enlarge
A carver's tools	Click to enlarge
Photos : Club 41

While the artists were working, the visitors could attend various events - a guided visit of a quarry, a lecture and an exhibition about the geology of the area, a visit of Our Lady Collegiate church centred on Romanesque and Gothic architecture, photos about Gothic art, etc, not to mention educational workshops for children.

Photos : Club 41

Make a note of May 2009. If you are in Vernon, you are expected here and we would be happy to welcome you.

 

Special thanks to Mr Baboux from the Cercle d'Etudes Vernonnais (the local historical society) whose help made it possible to complete the page.

Monsieur Baboux : 7, 9, 10, 14, 19
Private collection: 8, 15, 16
Monsieur Tétillon - GPRV (Vernon Photo Club): 17, 18