Moustiers-Sainte-Marie

Moustiers-Sainte-Marie

*Mostiers Santa Maria* (Occitan)
Moustiers-Sainte-Marie Mostiers Santa Maria (Occitan)
Commune
	The village of Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, seen from above
	Coat of arms
	Location of Moustiers-Sainte-Marie
	Moustiers-Sainte-Marie Moustiers-Sainte-Marie
	Coordinates: 43°50′54″N 6°13′19″E / 43.8483°N 6.2219°E
Country	France
Region	Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Department	Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
Arrondissement	Digne-les-Bains
Canton	Riez
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Marc Bondil
Area 1	87.97 km2 (33.97 sq mi)
Population (2021)	706
• Density	8.0/km2 (21/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	04135 /04360
Elevation	474–1,729 m (1,555–5,673 ft) ; (avg. 631 m or 2,070 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Moustiers-Sainte-Marie (Occitan: Mostiers Santa Maria), or simply Moustiers, is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. In 2017, it had a population of 709. It considered one of the "most beautiful villages of France".

Geography

It lies at the western entrance to the Verdon Gorge (Gorges du Verdon). The village has been a centre of the pottery trade, especially faïence, for centuries. A spring flows out of the cliff and creates a waterfall in town, providing water power.

The village was built on platform terraces a hundred or so metres up the side of a limestone cliff. At twilight, when the sun on a clear day strikes the south-facing cliff, a diffuse pink light glows across the village.

The Star

Above the town, a gold-painted star hangs on a 225m-long chain suspended between two cliffs. Its origin, according to a legend popularised by Provençal poet Frédéric Mistral, lies in the 10th century; the original star and chain have been replaced several times since then. The current star is about 50 years old. Ten years ago it fell after the chain snapped, and was rehung using a helicopter.^[2]^[3]^[4]

Legend

According to the legend, during the Crusades the knight Bozon de Blacas was held prisoner by the Saracens; he vowed to hang a star over his village if he was able to return. No one knows how the star was originally hung there.^[5]

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1765	1,955	—
1793	1,902	−2.7%
1800	1,831	−3.7%
1806	1,752	−4.3%
1821	1,828	+4.3%
1831	1,725	−5.6%
1836	1,790	+3.8%
1841	1,812	+1.2%
1846	1,589	−12.3%
1851	1,473	−7.3%
1856	1,372	−6.9%
1861	1,297	−5.5%
1866	1,193	−8.0%
1872	1,246	+4.4%
1876	1,193	−4.3%
1881	1,167	−2.2%
1886	1,137	−2.6%
1891	1,062	−6.6%
1896	1,001	−5.7%
1901	907	−9.4%
1906	868	−4.3%
1911	785	−9.6%
1921	548	−30.2%
1926	545	−0.5%
1931	542	−0.6%
1936	534	−1.5%
1946	494	−7.5%
1954	444	−10.1%
1962	478	+7.7%
1968	535	+11.9%
1975	602	+12.5%
1982	575	−4.5%
1990	580	+0.9%
1999	625	+7.8%
2008	710	+13.6%

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Moustiers-Sainte-Marie is twinned with:

Montelupo Fiorentino in Italy

References

INSEE

^ "Populations légales 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
^ "Histoire". Office de Tourisme de Moustiers Sainte Marie. Archived from the original on 24 February 2007. Retrieved 10 October 2010.
^ "The village of Moustiers Sainte Marie". La Bastide de Moustiers. Archived from the original on 2006-04-29. Retrieved 2006-06-18.
^ Collins, Sarah (March 3, 2002). "A Wild Road Follows A Wild River". New York Times, Travel Section. Retrieved 2006-08-30.
^ "Tourist information in English". Archived from the original on 2011-01-16. Retrieved 2010-10-10.