L'Abbaye de Valsaintes

A whimsical rose garden on a mystical historic site is infused with spirituality.

06/26/2006
L'Abbaye de Valsaintes

The rose garden at the Abbey of Valsaintes is practically a neighbor to the house we're restoring at Revest des Brousses. So it stands to reason that I owed it a visit. Besides, from mid-May to mid-June, the garden celebrates its roses with "L'Abbaye en Roses," a festival marked by many special events.

The Valsaintes garden is on the grounds of an abbey, parts of which date to the 12th century. The building and grounds had fallen into disrepair when the property was acquired by Serge Orlandi, founder of the gardens. Working with a small group of family and friends, who roughed it living in small trailers during the work, he restored not only the church but created the terraced rose garden that today offers spectacular views over the surrounding landscape of Haute Provence.

Mr. Orlandi is convinced that this geographical spot has been a spiritual center since long before the abbey existed. He cites notches carved in the rock of the cliffs there as evidence that it was a center of Druidic sun worship. The site is historically referred to as "Les Boulinettes", which he believes to curious round or egg-like sandstone formations of varying sizes which are found in the mother rock on the site. He found a large number of these boules of sandstone, prised out of the rock and scattered around the abbey. As further evidence for the sacred and mystical qualities of the site, his assistant showed me a photo of a truly astounding cloud formation which appeared over the abbey during the restoration. The photo shows an almost perfectly round opening in the clouds covering the sky, and within this opening, a single cloud in the unmistakable form of a dove.

Whatever its spiritual inspiration, the rose garden at Valsaintes is delightfully peaceful and affords many opportunities for--if not downright meditation--at least contemplation of the garden and the grandiose landscape beyond, . Many nooks in the garden are furnished with benches inviting a quiet pause. One situated under a tree festooned with climbing roses offers a breathtaking view over the valley below. Sit there, and the ever-present wind stirring through the branches sounds mystical notes from a clay windchime, summoning inward calm.

But spirituality aside, L'Abbaye de Valsaintes is a lovely garden. Over 600 varieties of roses are harbored on its grounds, all of them cultivated without chemical intervention of any kind. The site, perched on a steep hillside, is actually quite small. Yet the creators of the garden have achieved an impression of spaciousness by ingenious use of terraces and passageways that lead to various areas or garden "rooms" each of which provides an agreeable sense of intimacy.

Of course, the terraces which are requisite to stabilizing such a steep site also add plenty of drama to the garden, showing the roses off to perfection as they tumble and cascade over the native stone retaining walls. The walls themselves are things of beauty, contributing mass and texture to the garden, as well as linking the gardened landscape to the wild tableau of cliffs and native plants beyond.

Similarly, the garden incorporates many native plants, such as smokebush (Cotinus sp.), which are not only beautiful in their own right, but also serve to integrate the garden harmoniously into the natural landscape which surrounds it so imposingly. In addition, the garden incorporated several existing olive trees, since the dawn of time the noble symbol of man's existence in the Mediterranean terrain. And the association of olives and roses turns out to be a happy one indeed.

The rose garden at the Abbey of Valsaintes is a small and intimate garden which resonates with the passion, respect, and love of its creators for this historic site. Every part of the garden calls to mind the timeless questions of man's relationship to the natural universe, and visiting it will inspire you to pause long enough to consider them.

L'Abbaye de Valsaintes, 04150 Simiane la Rotonde, Tel: +33 (0)4 92 75 94 19. Closed Sunday mornings and Tuesdays.

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