The ‘banal’ bakehouse
The communal or ‘banal’ bakehouse is extremely rare and banal in name only ! It stands as a reminder of the feudal ‘banality rights’ owed to the local Seigneur by those who used the oven, mill or press. The oven is now used once a year for the August village fête although the Seigniorial debt no longer requires paying !
Public footpaths around the village, through the Bessède forest and in the rolling hills of the Dordogne are a good way of exploring the area.
Urval Church
Origins a charming, Romanesque, fortified church comprising an eleventh-century, square chancel, a twelfth-century nave and a belfry which was added at a later date.
Above the chancel and nave are defence chambers in which the villagers sought refuge when under attack. A high wall was built above the chevet in an attempt to render the church impregnable.