The Village of Valbonne

"Mediterranean Interiors" is located in Valbonne, an old medieval town from the XVI th century, in the south of France, in Provence, between Nice, Cannes and Grasse, the perfumes capital. Valbonne is built around a XIIth century "Chalaisienne" abbey, which story is wonderfully told by an association " Les amis de l'abbaye de Valbonne" . But Valbonne is also well known for the Sophia-Antipolis science park, a large cosmopolite business area which hosts more than 1200 enterprises and an International School "C.I.V".

Extract from texts of the Association : "Amis de l'Abbaye de Valbonne" : 

"In the year 1199, Guillaume, of the monastic order of Chalais, made his way to an isolated valley between the Riou Merlet and the Brague rivers where he founded the Abbey of Sainte Marie de Valbonne, to which a new township was added 320 years later: the village of Valbonne..."

"Built in the form of a rectangle, with parallel horizontal and perpendicular streets around a central square, the village was situated at the northern limit of its commune. The buildings on the edges of the rectangle served as ramparts and there was a gate on each of the four sides. The village was placed next to the abbey, close to the River Brague, and designed by Don Taxil, prior of the Abbey and a worker monk from the Lérins monastery, which was then in charge of the Valbonne Abbey."