Already an important city of Gallia Narbonensis, Riez also remains a central place in the Middle Ages. A big market is still taking place here today. This glorious past is reflected in some monuments that have survived to this day, such as the baptistery, although the cathedral that belongs to it is long gone. A little further on, four pillars of a Roman temple have also been preserved.

Site history

The favorable location on three valleys and on the main route between the Alps and the Rhône valley enables the city of Riez to retain its rank even after the Middle Ages. In the year 434 a bishop's see is established and the construction of a cathedral begins in the same century. One builds directly on the ruins of the ancient thermal baths, which can explain the large dimensions of the building with a length of over 70 meters.

However, the Migration Period forced the inhabitants into the surrounding hills and the large church slowly fell into disrepair. In the 12th century the cathedral flourishes again briefly, but from 1498 the building is progressively demolished to make way for the new cathedral to be built in the new (today's) town centre.

Most of the cathedral was destroyed early on, which also explains why the free space was used for other purposes. Today the access road to the village leads straight through the nave of the former church. North of the roundabout is the baptistery on the left and the excavations of the eastern part of the church building on the right.

Access by public transport

Riez lays on the bus lines 67 and 450. More local busses are available. Exact timetables can be found under Zou! (only french).

The bus station is located at the large car park south of the town center and is also the starting point for this small tour. The stop is called Pré de Foire.

Access by car

Riez is located north of the well-known sections of the Verdon, between Gréoux and Moustiers and between Digne and St. Maximin. The sights lie south of the small town, directly on the D952 through road.

Parking site

The large free car park can be reached via the D952 road. There are other small parking lots in the city, but we recommend this one because it is also accessible on the market days.

Short trail

Between the parking lot and the roundabout are the excavations of the destroyed part of the cathedral. You can see them well from the parking lot and from the road leading from the roundabout to the center. We have to avoid this ditch, it's easier to do that in the north through a park. Along the road you come back to the height of the excavations and you can see the old foundations even better.

Opposite is the baptistery, entry is free.

The whole area has been redesigned for several years and there are always new excavations taking place. This means that routes can change at short notice.

The Baptistery of Riez

It is a building with a square floor plan on the outside. Inside, however, it is octagonal. The equally octagonal baptismal font is surrounded by columns and an ambulatory. The eight pillars are very similar to those of the nearby temple. They carry a Romanesque dome as a roof construction.

Road to the Roman Columns

From the baptistery we climb back up to the street and turn in the direction of the town centre. We remain on this western side of the road. Just before the bridge over the Colostre stream, narrow stairs leads down to the shore. There we go up to a small bridge over which we cross the water to the north. A little further ahead, on the left, are four Roman columns.

The Roman columns of Riez

They were carved from gray granite in the Esterel massif and are seven meters high. The Corinthian capitals are made of white marble and the richly decorated architrave is made of lime. The four columns together formed the main facade of a 1st-century temple believed to be dedicated to Apollo.

From the 2.5 meter high base, the temple dominated the main road leading from Aix-en-Provence to Riez until the 19th century.

Way back through the city

Following the orientation of the pillars, we go into the city and keep to the right. So we come to the current cathedral. If we continue, we come to Allée Louis Gardiol, this is the main artery of the town. All shops, restaurants and bars are located here. The market also finds place here.

At the first opportunity we turn right again and in two minutes we come back to the large parking lot and the bus stop.