The hamlet of Ecot
Hamlet perched at an altitude of 2000 m, 4 km from Bonneval sur Arc by going up the Arc.
It is the subject of a very nice walk. The chalets of l'Ecot, made of stones and slates, overhang the bottom of the valley.
You will be amazed by the simple and austere architecture of this hamlet at the end of the world, which reflects the harshness of human life at high altitude!
Cultural and architectural heritage that seduces the cinema!
This hamlet steeped in history since the Middle Ages, completely restored and protected since 1971, was chosen to be the village of Sébastien and his endearing grandfather César. It is as if time has stopped in this hamlet where you can admire the traditional stone houses grouped together under the benevolent eye of the Chapelle Sainte-Marguerite.
A unique character that did not escape the film crews, who knew how to sublimate her beauty in each of the adventures of Belle and Sebastian.
In summer, a family itinerary of 4 km from Bonneval sur Arc, allows hikers to go to this hamlet to discover its treasures and walk in the footsteps of Sebastian.
It is also the departure point for walks to the Carro and Evettes refuges, to the sources of the Arc, a natural and wild glacial cirque and for a beautiful canyoning descent of the Arc.
"With its old stones and its roofs of lauzes it is a cultural and architectural heritage completely preserved.
L'Écot represents a completely preserved cultural and architectural heritage that seduced Nicolas Vanier when he was looking for a film location for his movie Belle et Sébastien. Many people remember this television series from the 60's about the extraordinary encounter between a mountain child and a wild dog.
The hamlet of l'Ecot was exactly what the script called for, the film was shot in 2012, and released in 2013 and "made" 3 million tickets. Christian Duguy directed in 2014 the sequel to this story entitled Belle et Sébastien, l'aventure continue.
L'Ecot is obviously the main setting, the film was released in December 2015. Belle et Sébastien 3 was released in theaters in February 2018. This episode was also shot in Bonneval and the hamlet of L'Ecot.
The very beautiful chapel of Sainte-Marguerite in Romanesque style (frescoes from the Middle Ages) dominates the houses squeezed below around the alley. Cupules engraved on the rocks polished by the glaciers testify to the prehistoric imprint of the place.
Shepherds from Piedmont would have settled here with their herds around the 5th century, surviving the harsh and frugal conditions of the altitude.
Inhabited all year round until 1960, then abandoned in winter, l'Écot is now home to several young families from Bonneval sur Arc.
A little history...
The Romanesque Art is an artistic style essentially architectural which takes its source at the end of the Xth century in Western Europe and ceases with the appearance of the Gothic art (beginning of the XIIth century). Its technical characteristics consist of a basilica plan, barrel vaults with double arches, groin vaults, domes, spans and buttresses. The decoration is influenced by Antiquity, oriental art and Celtic traditions. Two periods can be distinguished: the first Romanesque art (950-1070) and the second Romanesque art (1060-1130), which is the evolution and culmination of the first.