Argnou
Origin of the name Argnou
Argnou is one of the hamlets of the municipality of Ayent. The name has not been explained.
Founding of Argnou
Argnou is a hamlet of the municipality of Ayent, in the district of Hérens, on the right bank of the Rhône. The site was inhabited long before the Middle Ages: at Les Frisses, on the edge of a plateau at about 800 m, Iron Age structures precede a Roman building whose debris contained late Roman tableware. How the medieval hamlet came into being is unknown. Its chapel, built towards the end of the 10th century or in the first half of the 11th century, may have served as a subsidiary church served from Sion.[1][2]
History of Argnou
Iron Age. Structures from this period lie just downhill from the site of the later Roman building at Les Frisses.[2]
3rd-5th century. The demolition debris of the Roman building at Les Frisses contains fine tableware of this period, along with animal bones.[2]
10th-11th century. The chapel is built, towards the end of the 10th century or in the first half of the 11th century.[1]
May 2002. Preliminary test trenches uncover the Roman building and reveal an earlier occupation.[2]
2003. From 17 February to 3 March, a rescue excavation over about 400 m² precedes the building of a family house. It yields a fragment of a schist tablet inscribed in the North Italic, or Lepontic, alphabet.[2]
2021. The chapel of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine is listed as a B object in the revised inventory of cultural property.[3]
Historic sites in Argnou
Chapel of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine. Chapel on the Route de la Madeleine, built towards the end of the 10th century or early in the 11th century. It is listed as cultural property of regional significance (B object).[1][3]
Remains in Argnou
Roman building at Les Frisses. Rectangular two-level building, excavated in 2003 on the plot of the Aymon house. Erosion has heavily worn down its walls and floors.[2]
Lepontic tablet. Small fragment of a polished schist tablet, about 6.2 by 3 cm, bearing two lines of writing in the North Italic alphabet of the Iron Age. Found against the facade wall of the Roman building, it probably comes from the nearby earlier occupation.[2]
Sources
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Ayent » (Danielle Allet-Zwissig, version du 08.09.2009)
- Olivier Paccolat (bureau TERA), notice « Ayent, Argnou, Les Frisses », dans « Chronique des découvertes archéologiques dans le canton du Valais en 2003 », Vallesia, 2004, p. 383-384
- Office fédéral de la protection de la population, « Révision Inventaire PBC 2021 : liste cantonale Canton du VS » (état au 1.1.2026)
- Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS), STATPOP, chiffres provisoires au 31.12.2025, via citypopulation.de
- geo.admin.ch, recherche de lieux (coordonnées)
Other villages near Argnou
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