La Citerne Garnier

Close to the Côte d'Albâtre on the Cauchois plateau, the village of Les Grandes Ventes has an original monument on the town hall square, which will be labeled "Rural Heritage" in 2021. The Citerne Garnier brings out from the past a current preoccupation: the importance of water.

Sylvie, my childhood friend, is a real environmental activist and beyond carbon, her real concern is water. She contacted me and suggested enthusiastically: "You absolutely must come with me to see something fantastic in a small village near Dieppe. The village has restored a cistern that collects rainwater with a magnificent fountain on the main square of the town hall
No sooner said than done! Here we are on the roads of the Pays de Caux, in the middle of the fields and the summer drought to go and see this famous cistern. "You see this lack of water! Everything is yellow and burned!" exclaims Sylvie.

Arrived at the Grandes Ventes, direction the Place de la Mairie. "Oh there you saw the reception!" laughs Sylvie. Indeed, in the middle of the square, in front of the fountain, there is a colorful installation made of deckchairs and pallets transformed into benches and low tables. A summer animation that, while highlighting the monument, invites to take a break. The village is also full of charm, as it has preserved its brick look from the past.
We go to the fountain to immediately put our hands and arms under the water that flows from the big tap. It is with great pleasure that, under the heat of the sun, the sensation of the liquidity and freshness of the water invades us when we dip our hands in the basin that surrounds the monument.
After this moment of happiness, we settle down in the deckchairs to look for information on our laptops. "In 1890, the mayor of the time launched the construction of a large cistern to collect rainwater from communal buildings, which, with an ingenious system, brought the water to a fountain in the center of the square. The cistern would be so large that it would take up the entire square of the town hall! I answer: "Yes, but it is thanks to the legacy of a very innovative woman, Madame Josephine Garnier, who in her will imposed this project by allocating a large sum of money to it!
"It's great that the community has maintained this tank. It shows exactly what needs to be done today with the lack of water", adds Sylvie.
The shape of the fountain is very much in the spirit of 19th century architecture with a sphere at the top symbolizing our planet and a lion's head showing the power of water.

Time passes and we have to leave. Sylvie is insatiable with her desire for "water".
"And if we took the opportunity to go to the seaside, Dieppe is just next door! I retort: "Great idea!"