a house in Ste. Maries de la Mer built to withstand the mistral winds “At night, when the mistral blows, and the house creaks everywhere and the wind brings the roar of the distant sea, increasing and swelling with sounds, one thinks one is lying in the cabin of a boat.” Like a boat jostled by waves, the Camargue hut’s lightweight reed design allowed the building to move with the wind as a single beam in the middle of the house kept it “anchored” to the ground.
The three saints Mary Magdalene, Mary Salome and Mary of Clopas are believed to be the women who were the first witnesses to the empty tomb at the resurrection of Jesus. After the Crucifixion of Jesus, the Marys were said to set sail from Alexandria, Egypt with their uncle Joseph of Arimathea. According to a longstanding French legend, they either sailed to or were cast adrift - arriving off the coast of what is now France, at "a sort of fortress named Oppidum-Râ". The location became known as "Our Lady of the Boat" (French: Nôtre-Dame-de-Ratis) - Râ being used in ratis, or boat).[4] The name was later changed to Notre-Dame-de-la-Mer. In 1838, it was changed to Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer.

Recreated and uploaded August 30, 2021

Photo album created by M. M. Meehan

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