THE MASSIF CENTRAL · FRANCE
Life on the summer pastures
Buildings, transhumance, dairy work, cheese, people and historic grazing agreements.
Seasonal grazing
Herds travelled up to summer pastures in spring or early summer, then descended in autumn. Local dates and routes varied by place and period; current festivities do not establish the historic route of a particular herd.
Detailed French dossier and sources →The buildings
A buron is associated with the mountain dairy traditions of Auvergne and Aubrac; a jasserie is characteristic of the Forez uplands. Tras and mazucs require careful attention to their local meaning and archaeological context.
History and building types →People and tools
Herders, dairy workers and owners organised livestock, milk processing, food, maintenance and transport. Individual stories belong to their sources and should not be generalised without evidence.
Oral histories and work →Cheese and land use
Summer milk could be turned into regional cheeses. Production rules today are set by the relevant specifications; historic leases and sales of grazing rights vary by date and place.
Cheese dossier → · Pastoral contracts →