Accolay: Pottery History and Water Jousting

Accolay’s local history brings together several distinct themes: pottery, water jousting, canal history and architectural styles. If you are looking for a hotel for your stay, these features can help you get a sense of the destination. They do not point to a single theme for a visit, but rather connect village history, water traditions and the surrounding landscape.

Pottery and Local History

The history of pottery is closely linked to the village. The former pottery production centre was established in the village by four former students of Alexandre Kostanda. Accolay pottery was distinguished by great technical ingenuity and an exceptionally extensive output. Both the founding of the production centre and its craftsmanship and productive focus are therefore part of this chapter in the village’s history.

Just before the entrance to the village, a monumental pottery structure recalls the village’s pottery history. It provides a visible landmark connected to this theme: the former production centre represents a chapter in manufacturing, while the monumental pottery structure serves as a reminder of that history. Both aspects offer different points of connection to the local ceramic tradition.

Water Jousting and the Canal du Nivernais

Water jousting has a long history in Accolay: events have been held here since as early as 1830. In the region, the practice traces its roots to raftsmen and boatmen who jousted on their boats while transporting timber. Its origins thus link the tradition both to life on the water and to the former timber trade.

In the Accoloise method, the boats are propelled by two polemen. The Association des Joutes Accoloises keeps water jousting alive in Accolay and trains on the Canal du Nivernais throughout the warm season. The seasonal training schedule may vary. The specific way the boats are propelled and the training on the canal distinguish the tradition as it is practised today from its historical origins.

The canal itself also has its own history: the branch of the Canal du Nivernais at Accolay was built at the end of the 19th century to transport firewood from the Morvan to Paris. This brings together two distinct connections with the water: the former movement of goods along the canal and water jousting as a traditional practice. Accolay also has three washhouses along a small stream. They add another, more modest connection with water in the village.

Landmarks and Architecture

At Poirier Rond, a white mulberry tree stands at a crossroads on the edge of the GR 13 in Accolay. It is among the northernmost known mulberry trees in Burgundy and is considered one of the region’s notable trees. Its specific connection to the route and its regional status as a notable tree make this landscape feature a distinct theme alongside the pottery and canal history.

Church architecture is another local feature. A church in Accolay has a long, single-nave nave with a panelled barrel vault. Its Romanesque choir and sanctuary include a straight bay with a pointed barrel vault and an apsidal vault. This description brings together the form of the nave and the distinctive vaulting in the choir and sanctuary, without requiring the church to be named.

Accolay for Your Hotel Stay

When choosing your destination, you can consider which aspect of Accolay you would like to shape your stay: its pottery history, water jousting and the canal, a landmark on the GR 13, or its church architecture. These themes offer different ways to explore the village, and do not have to be experienced in the same way.

Discover more destinations: Poilly-sur-Tholon, Diges, Mailly-Le-Château, Cussy-Les-Forges, La Ferté-Loupière, Tanlay, Lucy-sur-Yonne, Vézinnes.

Go to the regional travel overview: Yonne.