Barzan () is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Charente-Maritime Charente-Maritime () is a department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region on the southwestern coast of France. Named after the river Charente, its prefecture is La Rochelle. As of 2019, it had a population of 651,358 with an area of 6,864 square kil ...

department in the

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by ...

region of south-western

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Barzanais'' or ''Barzanaises''. The commune is the site of a major Gallo-Roman site of Barzan structured excavations carried out since 1994. Aerial photographs and the first archaeological excavations have revealed the presence of a Gallo-Roman port city of great importance (a monumental Gallo-Roman temple, baths, forum, theatre etc.). Other remains are the subject of annual excavations. It seems almost certain that this Gallo-Roman town is the ''Novioregum'' indicated in the Antonine Itinerary. It could also be the ''Portus Santonum'' (the port of the

Santones The Santoni or Santones ( grc, Σαντόνων, Σάντονες) were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the later region of Saintonge during the Iron Age and the Roman period. Name These people are noted as ''Santonum'', ''Santonos'' and ''Santoni ...

) described by

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importance ...

Geography

Barzan is located some 30 km south-west of Saintes and 15 km south-east of

Royan Royan (; in the Saintongeais dialect; oc, Roian) is a commune and town in the south-west of France, in the department of Charente-Maritime in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. Its inhabitants are known as ''Royannais'' and ''Royannaises''. Capi ...

in the former province of Saintonge. Access to the commune is by the D145 road from Meschers-sur-Gironde along the coast to the north-west which passes through the commune and continues south-east to Saint-Fort-sur-Gironde. The D114 branches from the D145 near the village and goes north to Arces. Apart from the village there are the hamlets of Barzan Plage, Chez Grenon, Les Monards - a small port, Chez Garnier, Les Grandes Mottes Gachin, and Les Maisons Neuves. In the south-west the commune borders the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

where there is a small beach resort built in the 1960s. The ''Riviere de Chauvignac'' flows south outside the eastern border to join the ''Ruisseau de Désir'' which forms the eastern border of the commune as it flows south to join the ''Riviere de Chauvignac'' to form the Monards Channel at Les Monards which connects to the sea.

Geology and Relief

The commune is located in the heart of a region of limestone hills overlooking the Gironde estuary. The

Littoral zone The littoral zone or nearshore is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely inundated), to coastal a ...

extends from the Bay of ''Chant-Dorat'', west of the commune, to the Monards Channel in the south, consists essentially of an alternation of muddy intertidal zones and Limestone cliffs which are relatively eroded and are termed ''dead'' zones in the southern part of the commune. This term is explained by the gradual retreat of the shoreline and the partial silting of the estuary at this point leaving the cliffs, once battered by the waves, several hundred metres from the waters of the estuary, in the middle of the swampy areas. This type of landscape, found mostly near Mortagne-sur-Gironde, marks the beginning of what is sometimes called the ''Charente Camargue''. In the north-west the Caillaud cliffs mark the border with the commune of Talmont-sur-Gironde.

Vegetation

The commune is sparsely wooded but has a forest covering the valley of ''Font Vielle''. The landscape is strongly marked by the cultivation of cereals, - especially wheat and maize - as well as vineyards: the vines that cover the hillsides are used particularly in the production of

cognac Cognac ( , also , ) is a variety of brandy named after the commune of Cognac, France. It is produced in the surrounding wine-growing region in the departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime. Cognac production falls under French appella ...

Heritage of pays royannais
(the town is classified as "Bons Bois") and for the production of ''Charentais Wine'' (called ''Talmonais'').

Toponymy

The name ''Barzan'' comed from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''Barisiacum'' from the

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

anthroponym ''Barisii'' with the Gallo-Roman suffix ''-acum'' indicating ownership transformed into the Latin suffix ''-anum''. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

the village was called ''Barlan'' then ''Balzan''. When the village became a commune the name ''Barzan'' was used. Barzan appears as ''Barzan'' on the 1750 Cassini Map and the same on the 1790 version.

History

A prehistoric settlement

The commune was inhabited very early, at least from

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...

times, which is evidenced by the discovery of numerous traces in various parts of the commune especially near the hill of ''La Garde'' which overlooks the Gironde estuary. In 1877 Eutrope Jouan, a local historian, reported the uncovering of fragments of polished axes and arrowheads. This discovery would be confirmed almost a century later, in 1970, by remnants of ceramics attributed to the ''Matignons'' and the ''Peu-Richardiens''. Layers of ash and stone fireplaces were found nearby and the presence of a cemetery a few metres from the site showed proof of the presence of a habitat there in about 3500 years BC. In 1975 an aerial survey by Jacques Dassié confirmed the discoveries and also showed the presence of fortifications around the camp: these being mainly composed of ditches and

chicane A chicane () is a serpentine curve in a road, added by design rather than dictated by geography. Chicanes add extra turns and are used both in motor racing and on roads and streets to slow traffic for safety. For example, one form of chicane is ...

type entrances, an ingenious device dangerously exposing any potential attackers. Two other more recent prehistoric sites have been discovered in the commune dating from the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

: one near the Fa mill and one on the north-east side of the La Garde hill near the Piloquets locality. The latter was discovered in 1980 during vine planting when it was revealed including several bronze axes dated about 1800 BC which are currently on display at the Museum of Royan.

A Celtic town

Around the 7th century BC Saintonge was inhabited by people of Celtic origin: the

. They first established their capital at

Pons The pons (from Latin , "bridge") is part of the brainstem that in humans and other bipeds lies inferior to the midbrain, superior to the medulla oblongata and anterior to the cerebellum. The pons is also called the pons Varolii ("bridge of Va ...

, then Saintes. The Santones settled at Fâ and built their main sanctuary on a hill overlooking the Gironde estuary. They founded the town which was the embryo of the Roman city which emerged at this place a few centuries later. Recent aerial surveys have also revealed traces of two other Celtic temples located on the La Garde hill. An excavation undertaken under the direction of Karine Robin from 1996 to 2002 also helped to uncover Gallic and Hispanic ceramics dating from the 5th century BC which indicates the presence of a port at this time. The fact that Saintonge was located on one of the routes for the

tin Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal. Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...

trade, a particularly active trade between the British Isles (mainly Cornwall) and the Mediterranean Sea at that time, suggests the possibility of the transit of this essential raw material for the manufacture of bronze through the port of this ancient city and explains the relative prosperity of the city even before the establishment of the Roman domination.

The golden age of the city

The province of the Santons was invaded by the Romans in 58 BC. This was the beginning of a golden age for its capital,

Mediolanum Santonum Mediolanum Santonum was a Roman town in Gallia Aquitania, now Saintes. It was founded in about 20 BC in connection with an expansion of the network of Roman roads serving Burdigala. The name means 'centre of the Santones', the tribe that then ...

(Saintes) which became the first capital of the Roman province of Gallia Aquitania. The city of ''Novioregum'' was then primarily an Emporium or a trading post, which is easily explained by its geographical location not far from the mouth of the Gironde. The first important buildings were probably built under the

Flavian Flavian may refer to: * A member of the Flavian dynasty of Roman emperors, during the late 1st century AD, or their works * Flavian Zeija, a Ugandan lawyer, academic and judge. Principal Judge of Uganda, since December 2019. * A person named Flavian ...

s (from 69 to 96), as evidenced by remnants of statues and several

Corinthian Corinthian or Corinthians may refer to: *Several Pauline epistles, books of the New Testament of the Bible: **First Epistle to the Corinthians **Second Epistle to the Corinthians **Third Epistle to the Corinthians (Orthodox) *A demonym relating to ...

Capitals dating from this period. Nevertheless, the city seems to have reached its peak in the 2nd century during the reigns of

Antoninus Pius Antoninus Pius ( Latin: ''Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Pius''; 19 September 86 – 7 March 161) was Roman emperor from 138 to 161. He was the fourth of the Five Good Emperors from the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. Born into a senatori ...

and

Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Latin: áːɾkus̠ auɾέːli.us̠ antɔ́ːni.us̠ English: ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good ...

. The city was adorned with important monuments: theatre, avenues, and port warehouses. The thermal baths were enlarged. The prosperous city was indicated in the Antonine Itinerary published in the 3rd century AD, during the reign of Emperor Diocletian. This veritable "Travelers Guide" before its time located ''Novioregum'' on the main road leading from Saintes to

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefect ...

via

Blaye Blaye (; oc, Blaia ) is a commune and subprefecture in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. For centuries, Blaye was a particularly convenient crossing point for those who came from the north and went to Bordea ...

, 15 leuga from Saintes (about 35 km) and 12 leuga from ''Tamnum'', a city probably located near Consac (about 29 km). The city was abandoned around the 4th or 5th century without anyone really knowing why. The port silting theory has been considered but no real evidence is established at present. This common phenomenon in the region caused the loss of another major port in the region - Brouage - in the 17th century.

A farming village

At the beginning of the

the ancient Roman city had become a stone quarry. Decorative elements were reused in homes and churches in the region, and Roman columns were long used as curbstones surrounding village wells. The village became a modest parish dependent on the castellanies of ''Theon, Conteneuil'' or ''Uzet''. A Romanesque church was built in the 12th century but was poorly maintained and was demolished in the 19th century. The economy of the village, growing cereal crops, explains the presence of several mills. In the 18th century vineyards became predominant but the ravages of phylloxera a century later put a stop to this activity although it is still important today.

Intriguing Ruins

The ruins scattered around Barzan have intrigued scholars for a long time: in 1715, Claude Masse, an engineer and geographer for the King, responsible for the provinces of

Aunis Aunis () is a historical province of France, situated in the north-west of the department of Charente-Maritime. Its historic capital is La Rochelle, which took over from Castrum Allionis (Châtelaillon) the historic capital which gives its name ...

and Saintonge had already noticed their presence when travelling. From 1921 many archaeological excavations were made on the Fâ site. Between 1921 and 1926 Leon Massiou, a local scholar and author of several books on history, conducted excavations at Fâ on the site of the mill resulting in the classification of the temple as an historical monument in 1937. From 1935 to 1957, Louis Basalo also conducted searches and explored an aqueduct in the north of the commune and excavated the baths. It was in 1975 that, due to a major

drought A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...

, that Jacques Dassié took aerial photographs unveiling a more important site than was previously suspected. Under the crops and vegetation there was nothing less than 140 hectares of a city with temples, baths, theatres, warehouses, forum, houses, and avenues. In 1994 the

Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to: *Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania) * Ministry of Culture (Algeria) *Ministry of Culture (Argentina) *Minister for the Arts (Australia) *Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan) * Ministry of ...

entrusted Peter Aupert, research director at CNRS, with the excavation of the sanctuary of the Fâ. They proved in particular the construction of two successive temples, the existence of a vast pit - perhaps sacrificial, and marks of the construction of a podium. In 1999 positive surveys were conducted by Laurence Tranoy at a place called ''le Trésor'' on the site of what is assumed to have been the

forum Forum or The Forum (plural forums or fora) may refer to: Common uses * Forum (legal), designated space for public expression in the United States *Forum (Roman), open public space within a Roman city **Roman Forum, most famous example *Internet ...

at the crossroads of the

Cardo A cardo (plural ''cardines'') was a north–south street in Ancient Roman cities and military camps as an integral component of city planning. The cardo maximus, or most often the ''cardo'', was the main or central north–south-oriented street. ...

and

Decumanus Maximus In Roman urban planning, a decumanus was an east–west-oriented road in a Roman city or castrum (military camp). The main decumanus of a particular city was the Decumanus Maximus, or most often simply "the Decumanus". In the rectangular street g ...

. From 1998 to 2004 the excavations of ''

Thermae In ancient Rome, (from Greek , "hot") and (from Greek ) were facilities for bathing. usually refers to the large imperial bath complexes, while were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed in great numbers throughout ...

'' north of Fâ were led by Alain Bouet, HDR

Docent The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French " ''maître de con ...

at the

University of Bordeaux The University of Bordeaux (French: ''Université de Bordeaux'') is a Lists of universities in France, public university based in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in Southern France, southwestern France. It has several campuses in the cities and towns of Bor ...

and specialist in the

era. He soon revealed the existence of one of the largest ruins known in

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

to date. Since 2005 the site of the baths has been open to the public. BZH5

From 2003 to 2005 Alain Bouet also participated in excavations of the warehouses (the ''

horrea A ''horreum'' (plural: ''horrea'') was a type of public warehouse used during the ancient Roman period. Although the Latin term is often used to refer to granaries, Roman ''horrea'' were used to store many other types of consumables; the giant Hor ...

'') just south of the Fâ sanctuary revealing large stores of great importance to the ancient port. A series of excavations conducted between 2006 and 2008 at Fa also revealed the

peribolos In ancient Greek and Roman architecture, a peribolos was a court enclosed by a wall, especially one surrounding a sacred area such as a temple, shrine, or altar. This area, however, is not a necessary element to these structures since those built ...

walls showing both successive Compounds, the second huge compound measured approximately 106 m X 92 m. Restarted in 2007 by Antoine Nadeau, the excavations of the theatre at La Garde, resumed again in 2009. Highly degraded, the ruins were used as a stone quarry for centuries. As for the Grand Avenue revealed by aerial photographs of Jacques Dassié it is being studied in the context of current excavations, conducted under the direction of Laurence Tranoy (

University of La Rochelle La Rochelle Université (''La Rochelle Université'') is a French public university, based in La Rochelle. Founded in 1993, La Rochelle Université belongs to the Academy of Poitiers. In 2021, the university counted nearly 9000 students. La Roc ...

) and Emmanuel Moizan (INRAP), which aim to understand the flow of the ancient city. The two archaeologists explained their research in a report devoted to one of these excavations in 2008.

Administration

Municipal Administration

From 1789 to 1799, under the Law of 14 December 1789, municipal officials (mayors) were directly elected for 2 years and re-elected by the active citizens of the town aged at least 25 years and paying contribution of at least 3 working days to the commune. Those eligible had to pay a tax equivalent to at least ten working days. From 1799 to 1848, under the Constitution of 22 Frimaire Year VIII (13 December 1799) regarding the election of the mayor, mayors were appointed by the prefect for communes with fewer than 5000 inhabitants. The

Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

established the appointment of mayors and municipal councilors. After the organic laws in 1831 mayors were appointed (by the king for communes with more than 3000 inhabitants, the prefect for the smaller ones), but councillors were elected by suffrage for six years. From 3 July 1848 to 1851 mayors were elected by the municipal council for communes with less than 6000 inhabitants. From 1851 to 1871 mayors were appointed by the prefect for communes with less than 3000 inhabitants for 5 years from 1855. After 1871 mayors were elected again except in the capitals (departments, boroughs or districts). Only on 28 March 1882, a law on municipal organization (still in force) was passed which regulates the principle of election of the mayor and deputy by the city council, whatever the size of the commune (except for Paris). The law of 5 April 1884 fixed the mandate to four years, changed to six years on 10 April 1929. List of Successive Mayors

Canton

The commune belongs to the ''

Canton of Saintonge Estuaire The canton of Saintonge Estuaire is an administrative division of the Charente-Maritime department, western France. It was created at the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015. Its seat is in Meschers-sur-Gironde. It ...

''. Until 1802 it belonged to the ephemeral Canton of Mortagne-sur-Gironde, then the Canton of Cozes until March 2015.

Intercommunality

Barzan is one of 34 communes of the ''Agglomeration Community of Royan Atlantique''.

Demography

In 2017 the commune had 470 inhabitants. Le poilu de Barzan

Distribution of Age Groups

The population of the town is relatively old. Percentage Distribution of Age Groups in Barzan and Charente-Maritime Department in 2017 Source: INSEEÉvolution et structure de la population en 2017: Commune de Barzan (17034)
/ref>

Economy

The town is in the heart of a particularly large labour pool: the employment area of Royan (the result of the partition of the old Saintonge maritime employment area which included many communes of ''Pays Rochefortais'', ''Pays Marennes-Oléron'', and ''Pays Royannais'') consisting of 27,753 employees in 2008.Thirteen employment zones in Poitou-Charentes
INSEE, consulted on 5 August 2012 The Royan employment area is, with that of

La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wi ...

, the most dynamic in the Poitou-Charentes region with both taking advantage of an "economic fabric and a dynamic demography"(INSEE). Growth is particularly strong because of the development of tertiary activities. The economy of the commune is still dominated by agriculture and viticulture even though tourism is growing rapidly due to the presence of the Gallo-Roman site of Novioregum. This gradual development originates from an archeological museum with displays of remains from the site as well as models to represent the city in Roman times. The active population is 166, of which 34 (20.5%) unemployed. The participation rate of persons between 15 and 64 years amounted to 57.4%, which is below the national average of 63.7%. The rate of retired people is higher than the national figures, 14.3% to 6.7%. School students are 4.8%, against 10.6% on average in the rest of the country.Dossier complet: Commune de Barzan (17034)
INSEE, retrieved 14 September 2020 The average income per household are higher than the national figures. They are €19,932 per year against €15,027 per year. The rate of people who own their homes is higher than the national average at 81.3% against 55.3%.

Culture and heritage

Gallo-Roman site of Fâ

The name of this site derives from

fanum The vocabulary of ancient Roman religion was highly specialized. Its study affords important information about the religion, traditions and beliefs of the ancient Romans. This legacy is conspicuous in European cultural history in its influence o ...

meaning "temple" and has been known since the 18th century from the work of Claude Masse, but its magnitude was not revealed until 1975 in the aerial surveys by Jacques Dassié. The urban area of the Roman town covers 40 hectares. There are the remains of a Gallo-Roman port city including temples, main street, warehouses, thermal baths, Port etc. The site was at first privately owned but was purchased by the municipality in 1993. An association was created (ASSA Barzan) and in December of that year it was decided to open the site to the public. Excavations have been ongoing since 1995, mainly by the

Bordeaux Montaigne University Bordeaux Montaigne University (French: ''Université Bordeaux Montaigne''; formerly ''Université Michel de Montaigne Bordeaux 3'') is a public university in Pessac, France, approximately 8 kilometres (5 miles) southwest of the city centre of B ...

and the

. A joint union (commune and department) was formed for the acquisition of the classified area and for its development, both of the scientific and touristic sites, managed by the ASSA. The site is registered as an historical monument. File:Théâtre gallo-romain de Barzan 2015.JPG, The Gallo-Roman Theatre File:Barzan fa20.JPG File:Barzan fa02.jpg File:Barzan fa1.JPG File:Barzan fa2.JPG File:Barzan fa18.JPG, The baths File:Site archeo fa tour moulin.JPG File:Site archeo fa mur peribole1.JPG, The peribolos

Church of Saint Peter

This church was built between 1875 and 1879 to replace an old church dating back to the 12th century which was altered in the 17th century. The municipal council voted to demolish it because of its dilapidation. During the demolition of the building of

sarcophagi A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek ...

with saddleback lids were unearthed. Dating back to the

, two iron dagger blades and fragments of vases mixed with bones were found there. A new sanctuary was built to the design of the architect Gustave Alaux who had already worked on the construction of several churches in the Bordeaux region including the church of Mortagne-sur-Gironde a few kilometres from the commune. This building was in the Gothic Revival style and incorporated a Latin cross plan consisting of a single

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

with three bays, with a ribbed

vault Vault may refer to: * Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards Architecture * Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space * Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored * Burial vault (enclosure ...

lit by six large lancet windows decorated with stained glass executed by the master glassmaker E. Lagrange. Six stone

buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral ( ...

es support the nave. A

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...

and

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...

frame the shrine which was consecrated in 1879. The bell tower and porch has three levels and is topped with an octagonal stone arrow overlooking the town.''The Heritage of the communes of Charente-Maritime'', éditions Flohic The Church contains an

ex-voto An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or to a divinity; the term is usually restricted to Christian examples. It is given in fulfillment of a vow (hence the Latin term, short for ''ex voto suscepto'', "from the vow made") or in gratitude o ...

(19th century) which is registered as an historical object.

Obelisk of La Garde

This monument, located atop the hill at La Guard, was built in the 19th century to serve as a maritime Landmark. Situated among vineyards, it forms a kind of obelisk of hewn stone measuring about 5 metres high.

The Town hall and former school

At the beginning of the 19th century, in rural communes the town hall and communal school were often located in the same building. At Barzan works, directed by architect Georges Naud Saintais who was very active in the Canton, were carried out in two stages: a first stage between 1904 and 1906 followed by a building expansion between 1907 and 1908 in order to provide housing for the teacher. This simple single-storey building consists of a main building with five bays covered with Roman tiles and a pavilion with projections from the same material.

War Memorial

This memorial was built in 1922 in the Church Square. It is in the form of a polychrome statue in cast iron 1.6 metres tall representing a soldier with grounded arms. The monument was ordered from a company located in

Jeumont Jeumont () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It lies on the Belgian border and on the river Sambre, adjacent to the Belgian town Erquelinnes. It is part of the agglomeration (''unité urbaine'') of Maubeuge. Population ...

(Nord) and mounted on a pedestal erected by a local contractor.

The Port of Monards

The harbour for the commune is at the hamlet of Monards set along a channel which is a tributary of the Gironde. Formerly a fishing port and pilot station on the estuary, it was cited in 1681. In the 19th century this small port was particularly active, exporting flour, cereals, wine, spirits, water and especially important for coal coming from England. This port is now partially converted into a marina. It consists of two basins totaling 78 berths. The village contains many old houses whose origins date back to the 17th and 18th centuries for the oldest and an old tidal mill. Two hostels are located on each side of the port. A company to extract sand and aggregates is based in the hamlet on the edge of the Gironde estuary.

Barzan-Plage

''Barzan-Plage'' (Barzan beach) has a small beach resort located along the Chant-Dorat bay. There was a leisure centre called ''Therm'océan'' consisting of three swimming pools and an adjoining spa centre. In 2013 the centre was razed.

Local life

Worship

Barzan Church is part of the parish of Our Lady of the Estuary which includes several places of worship in the Canton of Cozes. Masses are celebrated only occasionally in the Barzan church.Timetable of Masses

Communal associations

The commune has several associations with the best known being the ASSA Barzan for the promotion of municipal heritage and the management of the archaeological site of Fa. The town also has a skeet shooting club, a hunting association, a festival committee, a Seniors club, and a petanque club. During the summer festivals for "sardines", balls, and petanque competitions are held regularly.