All along the railing of the Pyrenees Boulevard of Pau, in the part located between the Royal Place and Beaumont Park, are installed 52 plates of metal which are used as marks toward the mountains.


 

The lightning conductor located on the chimney of the Tramways factory, a place that houses today the Community Archives and the Heritage section of the André Labarrère media library, is used as a  point aimed by all the plates.

To spot precisely a mountain top, each plate is surmounted by a notch directly cut on the railing.
The number of the sign, the name of the aimed site as well as the altitude for a top or the distance to join Pau from a village are engraved on each plate.

Istalled in 1900, a month after the inauguration of the Tramway factory, this clever system had been set by architects Rolland, Meunier and Maussier.
At the beginning, 61 plates were planned, along with 3 signs fixed on cast iron colums, indicating the order number, the name and the altitude of each peak.
Today, there are 56 targets but only 52 plates (n° 2, 3, 29 and 34 missing). N° 15 and 18 plates are doubled. N° 19 and 20 are inverted and probably their keys too.

 

There are 5 more important plates that read :
Panneau d'indication

To recognize a top,
aim at the Tramway factory conductor
and read its name on the plate.

On May the 1st, 1900, the planned budget for this system was 420 francs.

 

Complete list of landmarks on the Pyrennees Boulevard
Engineer Voyer report
Deliberation of the municipal council of May the first, 1900

  • Français
  • Anglais
  • Espagnol
  • Allemand
  • Occitan

From the boulevard ...

Horizons has been realized thanks to the participation of the Factory of the Digital Bank of Knowledges in Aquitaine.

The project is supported by Pau-Pyrenees Conurbation Community.

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