Village de Marsan

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Marsan is a small village surrounded by fields and hills, offering a tranquil rural setting. Its traditional architecture and peaceful atmosphere make it a typical place of the Gascon countryside.

The church of Saint Pierre is an old annex to the castle. It has a bell tower with arcades dating from the 14th century. This bell has Gothic inscriptions and is classified as a historical monument. The capital with acanthus foliage is protected under the title of Historic Monuments, it dates from pre-Romanesque times and today serves as a stoup. The stained glass windows that adorn the church are reminiscent of mashrabiya: openwork partitions.

At a place called Lasserre, there is a private chapel. It is that of the Montesquiou Fezensac family.

The commune of Marsan had a medieval cemetery. More than half a century ago, Merovingian tombs were unearthed during agricultural work at the locality of Lastours: a plaque-loop decorated with geometric designs, several oval loops… At the time, these remains were deposited in the castle. During the work on the RN124, in 2008, 209 medieval tombs were discovered. They were spread over 6000 m2. The work began with the stripping of the site using a mechanical shovel under the watchful eye of archaeologists, watching for bones or variations in the color of the earth. The excavation continued in a more meticulous manner with trowels and tools from prosthetists and paintbrushes. The construction site employed 7 archaeologists, including two anthropologists. The bones are then sent to a laboratory to determine the sex, age, health status and cause of death. The excavations also revealed pits containing animal bones. This large-scale operation has uncovered a diversity of burials including monoxyle coffins (coffins carved from a single piece of wood, estimated to be between 700 and 1000 years old). One of them, exceptionally preserved, has been the subject of a conservatory treatment. This coffin constituted a central element in the “archaeoanalogue” approach of the medieval cemetery. The analysis of this site has allowed to highlight and understand the treatment of the dead within a group of villagers in the rural environment of the Middle Ages.

The village of Marsan also has a castle, built in 1750. This castle has belonged, for generations, to the illustrious family of Montesquiou (from the counts of Fezensac themselves from the former Dukes of Gascogne. Marsan is the only seigniorial residence in Gers to have preserved the castle in the family from the 12th century to the present day without interruption. The castle managed to avoid the sale of national assets following the French Revolution. This castle is private and cannot be visited.

Gesproken talen : Frans

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