Travel Guide Serverette

Serverette, a small village built on a knoll encircled by a meander of the Truyère river, takes its name from the Occitan serve (fountain). It is said that fairies reigned over this serverette (small fountain), to whom legend attributes the creation of three large boulders to the south of the village, three granite palets to the west and an impressive chaos to the south. The Fades, as they are known locally, are said to have helped the peasants to pile up these large boulders, which they pulled out of the ground. As the Christian faith spread, a chapel was built near the rocks once inhabited by the Fades. Much later, one of these rocks was used as a pedestal for a large statue of the Virgin Mary.No longer believing in their powers, they dug their own tomb in the granite. This can still be seen near Cagnot and at Roc des Roziers. More scientifically, these aligned cavities are undoubtedly tombs dating back to the High Middle Ages. The beautiful 12th-century Romanesque church of Saint-Jean is home to a statue of the Black Madonna. There are two possible explanations for its presence in Serverette: the first is that it was brought back from Palestine by Lord Guillaume Merle on his return from the Crusades. The second is that a local resident discovered it while digging in his garden. It was venerated in the church as Notre-Dame de la Petite Fontaine. The entrance to the old village is marked by an original, antique two-sided stone cross, bearing a representation of Christ on one side and the Virgin Mary on the other.