Garlaban is a hill which looks out to

Aubagne Aubagne (, ''Aubanha'' in Occitan language, Occitan according to the classic norm or ''Aubagno'' according to the Mistralian norm) is a Commune in France, commune in the southern French Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône. In ...

. The summit is 715 metres high although its highest point is the ''butte des pinsots'' (731 m). It can be seen from most of the southern part of

Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...

, from

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

to the valley of

Huveaune The Huveaune (; oc, Evèuna) is a small river in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. It is long and flows through the communes of La Penne-sur-Huveaune, Nans-les-Pins, Saint-Zacharie, Plan-d'Aups-Sainte-Baume, Auriol, ...

, through to the motorway in

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

and the one in

Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...

. In the past, seamen from Marseille used to look to it to find direction.

Cultural references

*It is perhaps best known thanks to

Marcel Pagnol Marcel Paul Pagnol (; 28 February 1895 – 18 April 1974) was a French novelist, playwright, and filmmaker. Regarded as an auteur, in 1946, he became the first filmmaker elected to the Académie française. Although his work is less fashionable ...

, who referred to it in ''

My Father's Glory ''My Father's Glory'' (french: La Gloire de mon père) is a 1957 autobiographical novel by Marcel Pagnol. Its sequel is ''My Mother's Castle''. It is the first of four volumes in Pagnol's ''Souvenirs d'enfance'' series. It is also a 1990 film ba ...

'' and ''

My Mother's Castle ''My Mother's Castle'' (french: Le Château de ma mère) is a 1957 autobiographical novel by Marcel Pagnol, the second in the four-volume series '' Souvenirs d'enfance'' and the sequel to '' My Father's Glory''. It was the subject of a film ma ...

''. Landforms of Bouches-du-Rhône Mountains of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur {{BouchesRhône-geo-stub