LA STATUE DE LA COLONNE

About

Edmond Chambert – 1858

The column was erected to mark the reconstruction of local road No. 16 leading to the Port de la Glère via the Port de Venasque inn. It bears the date 19 September 1858. The town of Luchon thus wished to express its gratitude to the prefect who had supported this development and intended to place it at the entrance to the new road. Its design was conceived by Edmond Chambert in a drawing dated 1 May 1858; it was originally intended to be set upon a pyramid-shaped pile of stones. In the absence of local competition, the commission for the monument was awarded to Cassagnavère, a sculptor, and Vitrac, a stonemason.

Originally situated in the north-west (at the entrance to the Route d’Espagne) of the Parc des Quinconces, it was moved to the south-eastern end. It is depicted at this original location in an engraving by Victor Petit, held at the Toulouse Municipal Library. The relocation resulted in a reversal of the coats of arms: the coat of arms of Luchon, now facing Spain, was logically originally oriented towards the north, facing the town.

The Haute-Garonne General Council, at its meeting on 5 August 1857, had voted to construct a mule track, intended to be converted later into a major local road. Work began in September 1857; after a break due to inclement weather, it resumed in May and was completed in September 1858. The road, 12 km long, was 1.50 m wide, with gradients not exceeding 5 cm per metre. A dedication to Mr West, Prefect of Haute-Garonne, who actively supported the construction of this trade route, was initially engraved on the shaft of the milestone. The prefect’s name was replaced by the words ‘the town’, which rendered the inscription obsolete and explains the slight indentation at that point on the column

The Route de la Glère was intended to be the first step towards the construction of a railway line connecting to Spain via a long tunnel, but this latter project never came to fruition.