AUTUN AUTUN, BURGUNDY, FRANCE

 

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Autun (about 21 000 inhabitants) is a town in central France, in the French region of Burgundy in Saône - et-Loire department, located on the left bank of the river Arroux, 50 km west of Beaune, and 90 km southwest of Dijon (Dijon). Autun was founded, under the name Augustodunum, during the reign of Emperor Augustus, it was an important municipal city and residence of the Roman prefect of Gaul. In the late Empire, the city was devastated several times by barbarians. In 725 the city was captured by Arabs, this conquest represented the extreme eastern point reached by Arab troops in Europe, which in 732, after the defeat of the battle of Tours were forced to retreat. Autun flourished under the dukes of Burgundy, but it was burned during the Hundred Years War. 

Autun Main Attractions: The city is known for its numerous and important Roman remains and the Romanesque Cathedral of St.-Lazare. Dating back to the imperial Roman period still remain largely part of the walls, originally 6 km long, with two of the monumental gates of the ancient Roman town-wall: Porte St.-André and Porte d'Arroux (first century BC). Important remains of the Roman Theater, the largest of Gaul, 148 meters in diameter, which could contain 20 000 spectators. In the northwest area of the city are the ruins of the Temple of Janus. Another Roman remain is called Pierre de Couhard, a Roman structure whose function has not yet been clearly identified. Artistically of great importance is the Cathedral of St.-Lazare, Romanesque Burgundian in style, it was built for the bishop Étienne de Bâgé in the twelfth century to collect the relics of Saint-Lazare. The church is richly decorated with sculptures, interesting in particular those of tympanum above the western portal, which represent the last judgment, by Gislebertus, and the beautiful and various sculptures of the capitals. Among the other interesting buildings in Autun are to visit: the Ursuline Tower, the Hôtel de Ville (nineteenth century), Theater de la Ville, the Military School (lycée militaire), the old Prison (prison cellulaire), the Covered Passage (Passage couvert) in Neo-Renaissance style of the nineteenth century. 

Museums: Among the museums of Autun to signal: Rolin Museum (Musée Rolin), houses a rich collection of art ranging from ancient times to the twentieth century (Roman mosaics, medieval sculptures, Flemish paintings). The Natural History Museum (Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle), one of the most prestigious museums of natural history of France with more than 800 000 specimen of birds, fossils, plants, insects and shells. The Museum of the "Musée des Anciens Enfants de Troupe" (Old Boys of Troops Museum). 

 

Climate in Autun:

The climate of Autun is pretty cool, the temperature during the winter often reaches values rather low, the rain is more frequent during spring and autumn, summer is hot sometimes, but never too much. The average annual rainfall is around 900 mm.