Ependes Fr: Art, Culture and Starry Skies

Ependes Fr is a locality in the municipality of Bois-d’Amont in the Swiss canton of Fribourg. Protected buildings and Roman remains stand alongside art in the village, hands-on clay work, stargazing and a nature experience by the water. Local themes thus range from local history to creative activities and observation.

Cultural history and Roman remains

As of 1 January 2026, the Château de Lanther puis d’Amman, the Saint-Etienne parish church in Ependes and the Manoir Wild in Le Petit-Ependes are among the protected cultural properties. The buildings and archaeological finds reveal different aspects of local history: protected architecture and archaeological evidence of Roman settlement.

Traces of a Roman settlement were discovered beneath and around the parish church. Objects from the Roman period found in Ependes include a silver coin from 79 AD, spindle whorls, pottery and roof tiles. The church thus brings together a protected cultural property and evidence of an earlier settlement history.

Art in the village and pottery classes

The Ependes sculpture trail is a cultural walk through the village. The circular route, which is open to everyone, runs between houses, gardens and meadows. Around 40 works by approximately 20 artists are displayed along the route.

POTSFINK Poterie d’Ependes regularly offers pottery classes for beginners and advanced participants. A one-day class introduces practical work with clay and various shaping techniques. On the sculpture trail, you can view artworks during a walk; at POTSFINK, you can work hands-on with clay yourself.

The activities also differ in duration: the pottery class lasts one day, while a group tour of the observatory lasts 90 minutes.

Starry skies and getting to the observatory

The Ependes Observatory offers observing evenings for everyone. Its educational activities cover stars, planets and celestial phenomena. Group tours take place exclusively in the evening and cost CHF 200. They include a tour of the facilities, talks and explanations of the instruments; observing with the instruments is included, weather permitting.

You can reach the Ependes Observatory by car from Fribourg via Marly and Chésalles, or from Bulle via Le Mouret. The two routes differ depending on your starting point.

Landscape and nature experience

The former municipal area of Ependes lay in the higher Fribourg Central Plateau near the northern edge of the Alps and included a small high plateau, wooded hills and gently rising slopes. In 1997, 68 percent of the area was agricultural land, while 23 percent consisted of forests and wooded areas.

A high plateau is an elevated, relatively level area; wooded hills and gently rising slopes are other landforms found in the former area. At the Ruisseau de Copy, you can walk barefoot over stones, through water, over moss and on ground covered with plants.

Discover more destinations: Avry Fr, Le Mouret, Le Glèbe, Fribourg, Treyvaux, Givisiez, Marly Fr, Rossens.

For the broader travel overview: La Sarine.