This splendid village oval shaped, is situated a couple of paces from the department of Hérault, above the city of Carcassonne . The fortifications were razed to the ground during the religious wars.

Its orange-coloured marble, veined with grey and white, already appreciated by Romans, was exported from 1633 through Europe.

This marble was used to the construction of Trianon (in Versailles), of the Palace Garnier (in Paris), to the basilica Holy Sernin (in Toulouse ) and to many civil and religious buildings.

We recommend you to stroll through the streets in order to discover the magnificent architectural treasures because there are a lot of them in this charming village (well in Florentine style, sublime facade of the Hotel Sicard...).

The abbey was based by Anian from 780, but it is at the end of the tenth century that it became a place of pilgrimage thanks to the discovery of relics of four saints: Alexandre, Armand, Audalde and Luce, martyrs of Caunes.The church, recently renovated, is a real work of art, containing an apse from the eleventh century, a transept from the twelfth century, one of the most beautiful apses of Romanic Languedoc...

For any information or demand of documentation, please, contact Caunes Minervois's city hall.

Photo : Local Committee of the Tourism of the Aude ("the Aude, Cathar Country")