Closely linked to the history of the spa town, the Royat cutting works offered in its shops precious and artisanal objects designed on site.
The Royat cutting works were founded in 1899 by Joseph Demarty, an engineer and mineralogist. In 1900 they became an industrial company called the Société anonymes des pierres précieuses d’Auvergne. Demarty chose Royat where wealthy people from all over the world came to take the waters at the thermal spa. The cuttings works offered jewels and everyday items in its shops, made from fine stones such as amethyst or fluorine from Auvergne, opal, jade and agate. It flourished and opened branches in Cannes, Biarritz and Paris.
Located on the Tiretaine, it used water wheels to activate the red sandstone mills that roughed the stones. The architect Jean Guillot (1889-1961), the designer of several villas and buildings in the metropolitan area, builtthe new buildings in a rationalist style combining concrete, limestone, metal and brick. They included workshops, offices, and the director’s shop and apartment.
Since its closure in 2004, the cutting works have remained frozen in time, with the machines and tools stored in the workshops and on the benches. The entire structure was surveyed by the Henri-Lecoq museum as part of a scientific and technical heritage mission (PASTEC programme) initiated by France’s Ministry for Culture. Purchased by the Royat town hall, the cutting works were examined with a view to reopening them.
- The establishment is open to visitors for the European Heritage Days.
