From the Great Saltworks of Salins-les-Bains to the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, the Production of Open-pan Salt
Cultural
203
1982
Cultural
From the Great Saltworks of Salins-les-Bains to the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, the Production of Open-pan Salt is a UNESCO World Heritage cultural, inscribed in 1982 (WHS 203).
Criteria & Perimeter
Inscription criteria
(i)(ii)(iv)
Category
Cultural
Summary
The Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, near Besançon, was built by Claude Nicolas Ledoux. Its construction, begun in 1775 during the reign of Louis XVI, was the first major achievement of industrial architecture, reflecting the ideal of progress of the Enlightenment. The vast, semicircular complex was designed to permit a rational and hierarchical organization of work and was to have been followed by the building of an ideal city, a project that was never realized. The Great Saltworks of Salins-les-Bains was active for at least 1200 years until stopping activity in 1962. From 1780 to 1895, its salt water travelled through 21 km of wood pipes to the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans. It was built near the immense Chaux Forest to ensure its supply of wood for fuel. The Saltworks of Salins shelters an underground gallery from the 13th century including a hydraulic pump from the 19th century that still functions. The boiler house demonstrates the difficulty of the saltworkers’ labour to collect the “White Gold”.
Monuments in the Zone
Selection of protected monuments
- Puits gothique de La Châtre — La Châtre
- Deux ponts du Port-la-Claye sur la rivière Le Lay (également sur communes de La Claye, Lairoux, Saint-Cyr-en-Talmondais) — Curzon
- Eglise paroissiale Saint-Martin — Chanceaux-sur-Choisille
- Eglise Saint-Jouin de Peray — Peray
- Prieuré de la Jaillette (ancien) — Louvaines
- Maison de Bourges — Bourges
- Dolmen de Cornevache de Selommes — Selommes
- Eglise Saint-Valérien — Châteaudun
- Ancienne hôtellerie Saint-Louis — Cléré-les-Pins
- Eglise Saint-Secondin — Molineuf
- Ancien séminaire Saint-Charles, autrefois bâtiment des Archives Départementales — Chartres
- Eolienne Bollée de Saint-Jean-de-Braye — Saint-Jean-de-Braye
- Menhir dit La Pierre-Frite de Grandmont — Noyers-sur-Cher
- Cathédrale Saint-Gatien — Tours
- Ancienne abbaye de Saint-Père-en-Vallée, actuellement annexe du lycée Marceau — Chartres
Appellations of the Landscape
Most-reviewed Loire appellations
| Appellation | Avg score | Reviews | Color |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sancerre | 89.3 | 554 | White |
| Muscadet Sèvre et Maine | 88.6 | 237 | White |
| Pouilly-Fumé | 89.6 | 153 | White |
| Vouvray | 88.4 | 153 | White |
| Touraine | 86.3 | 85 | White |
| Chinon | 88.7 | 72 | Red |
| Menetou-Salon | 87.3 | 69 | White |
| Crémant de Loire | 87.5 | 54 | Sparkling |
| Val de Loire | 85.6 | 41 | White |
| Saumur | 88.4 | 40 | White |
| Anjou | 87.6 | 36 | White |
| Rosé d'Anjou | 84 | 35 | Rosé |
Data source: UNESCO World Heritage Centre (data.culture.gouv.fr). Last updated: April 14, 2026.