Fontaine Saint-Eutrope de Favars

Favars

Below the village of Favars, in the Corrèze, a modest fountain capped with a small stone shelter keeps alive the memory of a miracle that tradition places in the 14th century. The lord Alibert, having returned empty-handed from a procession in Tulle where he had hoped to obtain the end of a plague epidemic, is said to have fallen asleep near this spring after a hunting party. An ancestor appeared to him in a dream, ordering him to have family relics carried to the fountain by a hermit, and to place it under the patronage of Saint Eutropius. The blessing of the water that followed is said to have ended the scourge. A darker legend holds that a knight who let his horse drink at the fountain without observing the customs saw the animal struck down on the spot — a horseshoe was long hung on the church door in memory of the episode. Until the 1980s, a pilgrimage gathered more than a thousand faithful every first Sunday of May, who came in procession from the 14th-century church behind the saint's statue to ask for the healing of "naoudzo" (childhood ailments), tics and rheumatism. Restored in 1977, the fountain, fed by water that has become scarce, now sees only a trickle of visitors, but remains an endearing witness to the popular devotions of the rural Limousin.

Getting there : 10 km south-east of Tulle; village discovery trail leading to the fountain, a short walk from the village centre.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound