Oyace

Introduction

A small village in the middle Valpelline, whose existence in Roman times is already certified by Strabo, who mentions a Castrum Agaciae, from which the current toponym would derive. The municipality boasts a 13th-century octagonal tower, known in local patois as the 'Tornalla': this is probably the reconstruction of a previous fortification by the lords of Quart, after those of Oyace were stripped of their titles due to their insubordination and their castle razed to the ground. In the upper part of the municipal territory, there are two hills, the Crète Sèche and the Collon, which were very popular until the last century. They connect Valpelline with the Swiss Val di Bagnes and Val d'Hérens respectively.

Description

Small village in the middle Valpelline, whose existence in Roman times is already certified by Strabo, who mentions a Castrum Agaciae, from which the current toponym would derive. The municipality boasts a 13th-century octagonal tower, known in local patois as the 'Tornalla': this was probably the reconstruction of a previous fortification by the lords of Quart, after those of Oyace were stripped of their titles due to their insubordination and their castle razed to the ground. In the upper part of the municipal territory, there are two hills, the Crète Sèche and the Collon, which were very popular until the last century. They connect Valpelline with the Swiss Val di Bagnes and Val d'Hérens respectively. Historical curiosities include how in 1630, the year of the terrible plague, the valley dwellers installed a gate near the village of Bouioz, effectively closing off access to the upper part of Valpelline with a sort of reverse cordon sanitaire. The result was that the contagion did not reach their villages. The historian and mountaineer from Valle d'Aosta, Joseph-Marie Henry, who was the parish priest of Valpelline for a long time, tells us that there was no cemetery in Oyace and that the dead had to be interred eight kilometres further down the valley, in Valpelline. Obviously in the winter months this was virtually impossible, so the corpses were kept in the snow until they could be transported to the cemetery. 

Information

Area:
Altitude:1377
Maximum elevation:
 Number of inhabitants:214
Name in dialect:
 Inhabitants name:
Patron Saint:
Website: www.comune.oyace.ao.it
Webcam:
Bordering municipalities: Bionaz, Nus, Ollomont, Quart, Valpelline
 Villages and hamlets: Bérrioz, Chez les Brédy, Gallian, La Crétaz (chef-lieu), Sergnau, Condemine, Closé, Bouyoz, Chez les Chenaux, Grenier, Vernosse, Voisinal, Pied-de-Ville
Alpeggiations:

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