Les couverts (arcades)

Les couverts (arcades) - Late 15th and early 16th century - Limestone.
Paul Broca (1824-1880) was born in the house built under the covered arcades. These covered areas, or arcaded galleries, are a constant feature of most of the bastides built at the time, characterized by an assertive desire for modern, functional urban planning. They encircle the central square and are covered galleries giving access to dwellings or, more generally, shops. Above them are half-timbered houses. At the end of the 19th century, the prefect ordered the destruction of the covered passageway opposite today's town hall, which spanned the Rue de la République, to allow stagecoaches to circulate on the main street.