Lozère Traditional Houses

Lozere is a part of the Languedoc Roussillon region where stone is definitely the dominant building material.

Lozere houses are generally made of grey or beige Granite stones or basalt, schist. Calcareous stones are often used, some of them being yellow.

All these colours give a strong character to houses in this area of the Languedoc region. Lozere roofs are made of Lauze, a variety of slates found in the region’s rivers. Some thatched roofs can also be found.

The traditional Lozere architecture makes the best use of the region’s wealth since many of the local property types use the local materials.

In this region of Languedoc Roussillon, winters are cold and snowfalls are massive. Lozere's houses front façades generally face the south or the east to benefit from the sun beams.

A Lozere Traditional House.

The house generally has its back lying against the mountain, this allows an access to each level from outside the house without stairs or a ladder.

These traditional French houses are in L shape, or built in a row. There are generally one or two storeys, not more, due to the heavy weight of the stones used. Walls are built using cob and clay is used to insulate them.

Some extremely rare Lozere houses have a thatched roof instead of Lauze slates. The higher the altitude, the more roofs are steeply pitched. This can be explained by the amount of rain and snowfalls in this area of Languedoc Roussillon.

• Next: Causses Traditional House


• Summary of Languedoc Roussillon Architecture