Heritage: Brusson

This rascard (or typical building of the Val d’Ayas) is located on the Northeastern part of the village and, on its right side, has recently built annexes.The wooden part holds a second floor which may be reached through a set of stairs located in the threshing area.The four “chambrettes” that jut out from the stone base are outlined by vertical axles.Under the ridge an IHS monogram is engraved, a profession of faith which was mandatory in 1536, during the beginning of Protestantism in Valle d’Aosta.The main beam has inscriptions on the side.At Brusson it is a custom that you can find only in the villages of Vollon and Extrapiéraz.The initials J.J.P. of Jean-Joseph Payn and the date 1798 are engraved on the side of the ridge.

Yonzo house, currently the town library, is in the centre of the village. It was a farmhouse that included both living quarters and rooms for farming activities in addition to a shop and a “Poor house”. From the architectural standpoint, its layout, size, wealth of decorative elements and passageways between the various levels stands it apart from other village buildings.
The most beautiful room is the covered courtyard surmounted by a beautiful wooden balcony. The balcony and the courtyard, highly visible even from the exterior, the column with painting, the beautiful wooden cross, the large lowered arch that surmounts the ancient entryway and the predominance of open spaces make the western facade architecturally unique.

The ancient building still shows the remains of the east-facing minor Romanesque church, dedicated to Saint Martin and its boundary walls on either side of the nave. Worthy of note are also the decorations in the apse and the well-preserved facework with a number of sections with a fishbone design.

Graines castle’ s ruins can be reached by taking the regional road going up from Verrès towards Ayas, and turning right after the Arcesaz hamlet, in Brusson: from here on, a short path goes through a cherry tree wood, wonderful to see during the spring and autumn months.

Dedicated to Our Lady of the Snow, it is dated 1880 and conserves even older elements: an eighteenth-century altar, a satin, eighteenth-century planet and a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary with Child, holding the moon under her feet and measuring 1.10 metres tall, probably from the seventeenth century.

Dated 1870 and renovated around twenty years ago. It was built in 1677 in honour of St. Gratus. In 1714 the chapel was dedicated to St. Matthew. It still hosts a wooden statue of St. Gratus and one of St. John the Baptist (not well preserved) and one of St. Matthew, from the eighteenth century.

Dedicated to Our Lady of the Snow, it is dated 1880 and conserves even older elements: an eighteenth-century altar, a satin, eighteenth-century planet and a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary with Child, holding the moon under her feet and measuring 1.10 metres tall, probably from the seventeenth century.

The 15th century church of San Maurizio was rebuilt between 1870 and 1873.
The octagonal pyramid-shaped spire of the bell tower by Brusson was rebuilt in 1882, given that the old one had been destroyed by lightening.
The church was designed by the architect Giuseppe Lancia and decorated by the Artari brothers from Verrès.

The parochial church conserves eighteenth century carved, painted and gilded wooden altars, as well as a series of sacred art objects.
Among these, there is a fifteenth century reliquary and a statue of the Pietà in carved and painted wood, which may be dated back to the 16th century. The sculpted pulpit with panels is from the first half of the nineteenth century.
The chancel is a praiseworthy work of art created at the end of that century by Reirosa of Ivrea, while the organ is a Vegezzi-Bossi from 1896. The four side altars date back to the 18th century.

PONT DE MASSOERE: legend has it that when a bridal procession crossed this bridge the groom had to carry the bride on his shoulders or else she would fall victim to the curses of the fairies that lived in the surrounding areas.

BORNA DU DIABLE (devil’s cave): this place is located in Servaz di Brusson and legend has it that it was inhabited by dragons and calves whose task it was to guard enchanted treasure. People visiting the cave would see a black cat at the entrance and then it would disappear.

BOIS DU DOT: forest in the surrounding areas of the Vollon. It was the home of a giant snake that scared the inhabitants of the area. Two brothers were able to kill it and, as a reward, asked for a free niche in the parish cemetery that in those days was located underneath the church flooring.

Based on: “La terra degli Challand - Gente e Paesi della Comunità Montana dell’Évançon” ed. (The Land of the Challand - People and Places of the Mountain Community of Évançon) ed. Musumeci

Legend has it that in May 1800 Napoleon casually met with the Austrian commander, De-Breux, to negotiate the passage of the French troops from Fort Bard.
Napoleon shrewdly entertained the Austrian officer until the arrival of his troops and then declared: “Sir, till now I was your prisoner, now you are mine” and indicated a spring a short distance from the pass as a location.

There is no doubt that Napoleon’s passage in the Aosta Valley has stimulated popular imagination over the years. In fact, historical research has found no confirmation of this episode at the “Col di Joux”, while there is evidence of the transit of the French leader in Etroubles, Aosta and Châtillon.

The history of Graines castle is well documented, but its fairy-tale appearance and perched position have also given rise to imaginative legends.

The treasure - a treasure is buried underneath the castle of Graines; nobody has ever been able to find it, even if many have tried and amongst them a herdsman. In a dream a voice indicated to him the place where he would have to dig, warning him to leave before the rooster sang three times. The following night the man did as he was told. He discovered a trapdoor and entered. Blinded by the glittering gold and shimmering gems that filled the cave he started to admire the beautiful treasure, digging his hands greedily into it. The rooster sang: once, twice, three times. The trapdoor closed without making a sound: and the man remained trapped inside the enchanted cave. Nobody ever heard anything from him again.

The castellans - the castle of Graines dominates the valley of Évançon, spreading out towards wide pastures and woods, from the spur of a mountain. Tradition has it that the castle had despotic lords and ladies of the manor with delicate white faces. It is told that the inhabitants of the village were forced to cover the snowy mountain peaks with soil so that the reflection of the sun on the snow and glaciers of Becca Torché would not tan the white skin of the ladies of Graines.

The site is temporarily closed

In the final years of the 19th century, Joseph Herbet was the director of the “Fenilliaz and Chamousira gold mines” under the employment of the English “Evançon Gold Mining Company”.
He became a photography aficionado in those years. He used his 13×18 folding view camera to take portraits of people, families. He photographed places as well and, above all, he captured the mine-related activities that took place in the areas of Brusson and Challand. A portion of his work can be admired at this permanent exhibition.
Photography is an extraordinary tool that is capable of telling us the story of the bygone days. Herbet’s photos offer vivid evidence of the dramatic change in the landscape and the local community during the 20th century.
The Documentation Centre is located in Brusson’s Laghetto area.

Visitors must drive along the road leading to Estoul in order to visit the “Chamousira mine”. After 4 kilometres there is a road sign indicating the first footpath (a 15 minute walk) to the mine’s entrance (guided tour).

“Rascard” are buildings typical to the Val d’Ayas. They are made of squared and stripped pine, fir and larch logs, notched together at the corners. These buildings were once exclusively used to store cereal and were designed to prevent humidity from forming and rodents from entering. The strategies adopted to solve these problems varied according to the type. In the most widespread and popular model, the rascard is supported by a series of “mushrooms”, wood columns about 70 cm long, often crown by a “losa” disk (flat stone, normally used for roofing). In other cases, like in the villages of Extrepiéraz or Mascognaz, harvests were protected by place a series of “lose” around the “rascard”, protruding beyond the base with a 40 centimetre high layer of fine plaster.
“Concentrated” rascard are buildings at least three stories high with two-story brick bases. The stables and cellar were on the ground floor. The middle floor was used as the house, clearly divided in two rooms, the “majòn” and the “péillo”, mainly used in the summer due to the high upward heat dispersion since the third floor of the rascard was suspended on the “mushrooms”. To fight off the cold, the family moved to the “gabenet”, a small area in the stable used as living quarters. The living quarters was usually in the brightest part, next to the door and near windows, and was separated from the stables by a low plank wall. Wood planks were also used to line walls and the floor. An iron cook stove, buckets of water in a corner, a folding table to save space, a bench and chest resting on the beds against the walls, gas lamps and a few shelves furnished the “gabenet” where the family lived for a few months during the year, preferring the animals’ company to the cold.
There are beautiful examples of rascard in the following villages: Frantse, Cunéaz, St. Jacques, Blanchard, Pilaz, Antagnod , Lignod, Mascognaz, Péio, Pra-Sec, Magnechoulaz, Mandrou in the municipality of Ayas; Extrepiéraz, Pasquier and Graines in the municipality of Brusson; Isollaz in the municipality of Challand St. Victor.

Questa corale è nata nel 2002. Il nome evoca le comunità sorte lungo la val d’Ayas che trae vita proprio dal ghiacciaio del Monte Rosa. Nella corale sono rappresentati quattro comuni: Ayas,Brusson, Challand Saint-Anselme e Challand Saint-Victor.
Direttore: Valter Choucher

Direttore: Valter Chouquer.
Il coro nasce nel 1999 da in’idea del maestro e di alcune mamme.Il coro è composto da bimbi con una età compresa tra i sei e i quattordici anni. Nel 2000 il coro coinvolge anche i bimbi di Ayas, Challand Saint-Victor e di Challand Saint-Anselme raddoppiando così il numero dei cantori. A giugno di ogni anno il coro organizza il baby festival canoro di primavera invitando altri gruppi.Il coro ha partecipato a diverse manifestazioni quali Telethon, l’adunata nazionale degli alpini,la presentazione dei cortrometraggi, Fete internazionale du Patois et des Emigrés. Attualmente il coro è composto da 30 bambini, dirige Valter Choucher e i loro canti sono accompagnati da una fisarmonica o una tastiera suonata da Leonardo Rous.