Memories of our Countryside
"FARMERS, these are the people who rent and farm the land, who produce the wealth and resources most essential to supporting the state; for this reason, the role of the farmer is highly important to the realm, and deserves a lot of governmental support."
Denis Diderot
Agriculture and farm work holds a choice place in the Encyclopaedia, with studies of ploughs, harrows, rollers, seeders, threshing barns, hay and harvests... Different types of field work are depicted against charming landscape scenery: a farmer working the earth, a woman pushing a seeder in a furrow. Further away, a man is using a roller to even out the ground, whilst others are sowing seeds by hand and harrowing.
The "Ferme d'antan" (the "Farm of Yesteryear"), located in Mandres-la-Côte, keeps the memories of Champagne's countryside alive. Set up in a traditional Haute-Marne farm, the site, through its rich collections, shows the daily life of farmers of the 19th Century, their labours across the seasons, and the different occupations of the rural world. Restored using traditional materials, the original building alone is a distre des hommes et des femmes qui foulèrent durant les siècles passés, le sol de cette demeure... Et si on se laisse prendre au jeu, peut-être alors croira-t-on les apercevoir lessivant le linge ou préparant la soupe du soir...
