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Provins

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Provins
Coat of arms of Provins
Coat of arms
Location of Provins
Map
CountryFrance
RegionÎle-de-France
DepartmentSeine-et-Marne
ArrondissementProvins
CantonProvins
IntercommunalityProvinois
Government
 • Mayor (2008–2014) Christian Jacob
Area
1
14.72 km2 (5.68 sq mi)
Population
 (2012)
12,161
 • Density830/km2 (2,100/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
77379 /77160
Elevation86–168 m (282–551 ft)
(avg. 91 m or 299 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Provins (French pronunciation: [pʁo.vɛ̃]) is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.

Provins, a town of medieval fairs, became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001.

Administration

Provins is not the largest city in the arrondissement, but it is the seat. The largest town is Montereau-Fault-Yonne.

The arrondissement has 7 cantons, 125 communes and 112,020 residents. The canton of Provins has 15 communes and 21,000 residents.

History

Provins was home to one of the Champagne fairs that were crucial to the medieval European economy, when the city was under the protection of Counts of Champagne.

Sights

Provins is known for its medieval fortifications, such as the Tour César (the Caesar Tower) and well-preserved city walls.

The Saint Quiriace Collegiate Church is located here. The Empress Galla Placidia is said to have presented Ancona with the relics of Judas Cyriacus. However, the saint's head was situated at Provins, brought from Jerusalem by Henry I of Champagne, who built a church in this town to display it. It is still at the Saint Quiriace Collegiate Church, although construction work during the 12th century was never completed due to financial difficulties during the reign of Philippe le Bel. A dome was added in the 17th century, and the old families of Provins who lived in the upper town were called "Children of the Dome."[1]

The police station (2010), a piece of contemporary architecture designed by Parisian architects Philippe Ameller and Jacques Dubois.

Two sets of caves underlie parts of the town. The first type were likely used to store food in the Middle Ages.[1] The second, deeper, type contains Bronze and Iron Age graffiti.[2]

Economy

Provins has important rose cultivation. It produces all sorts of foods from roses, and its main specialties are rose petal jam, Provinois rose honey and rose candy.

Provins, Town of Medieval Fairs
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Tour César in Provins
CriteriaCultural: ii, iv
Reference873
Inscription2001 (25th Session)

Notable people

Provins is the birthplace of:

Provins is the hometown of:

Twin towns

Provins is twinned with:

See also

References

  1. ^ "Provins in the dark". Retrieved 8 April 2013.
  2. ^ Digest, The Reader's (1978). The world's last mysteries. Montréal: Reader's Digest. p. 303. ISBN 089577044X.
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