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History and architecture
The course of the river
Grandvoir, the castle and ironworks
Hamipré, the church and the convent
The village of Lahérie
Longlier
The village of Massul
The Nolinfaing wash house
Le Sart
Engraved and scuplted shale: funerary monuments
Warmifontaine and the slate quarry
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The village of Massul.
The village of Massul has managed to retain its traditional character relatively well. Several farms dating from the end of the 19th century can be found here. New buildings are still fairly rare. Also notable at the edge of the houses are the garden walls in slate-type shale.
The white farms
The typical Ardennes farms in the Neufchâteau region are of the 'house block' variety and contain people, animal and harvested crops all under the same roof.
They are tri-cellular farms incorporating accommodation, stables and barns. Variations are evident such as the construction, on the right of the accommodation block, of a more recent lean-to roof, a semi-circular cul-de-four or a bakery (area with a baking oven).
The bi-cellular farm (two cells: accommodation block and stable under a hayloft) has become rare in the Neufchâteau region. Also rare are the farms with a canopy and the large square farms which enclose an inner courtyard. The overall layout is often linear, but farms in an 'L' shape do occur. As the size of a cell does not exceed 4 or 5 metres, the number of openings in the façade, often protected by external wooden shutters, is fairly restrained. Light enters into the accommodation block through open windows in the gables. The stable makes do with a door and aeration opening and the barn with a carriage door. The cell of the accommodation block is generally taller and wider than the outbuildings, as the level of comfort required and family needs make this necessary. The accommodation buildings and outbuildings are generally independent of one another and have their own saddleback roof (with two slopes) with hipped gables (triangular sections which reinforce the upper part of the gables) in the case of the accommodation buildings and a simple saddleback roof for the outbuildings. The gables of the outbuildings are often made of wood in a stone frame (to minimise the use of stone which was a rarer and more costly material than wood?) The outer walls are, for the most part, made of roughcast shale plastered in white. Unlike the Gaume villages where the houses are attached together (village streets), the Ardennes houses are all separate with each being surrounded by a piece of land.
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