Château de Courten was built by Count Antoine Pancrace de Courten and his wife Catherine Ballet. The illustrious builder was Lieutenant General of the Courten Regiment in the service of the King of France. Since 1883, it has been owned by the de Chastonay family through marriage.
The building
The building faces south-east / north-west.
There are also two venerable lime trees, contemporaries of the house and two hundred years old!
In the style of titled residences, the shutters are painted with geometric motifs in the colors of the de Courten coat of arms:
These motifs differ according to whether the shutters are closed or open
“The patronal feast"
Did you know that there was a time when women weren't allowed to dance? In fact, here at the festivities that followed mass on Sundays, women weren't allowed to dance with the men, or even to dance at all. They had to sit and wait.
In his book “Vercorin, le vieux village” (Vercorin, the old village), Pierre de Chastonay quotes Mario's account of the fête patronale, which took place during his stay at Château de Courten:
“... Then, a ball being de rigueur, the military - for everything is done militarily in Vercorin on St Boniface's day - faithful to the program, gave the signal for the dance by arriving with fanfare and drums on a small grassy square stretching under the windows of the village's main house, the one where I was staying. ...”.
“...I witnessed a scene that is unique in the world, except for the Valais.
In mountain parishes, dancing between the sexes is frowned upon, with the result that young girls, itchy as their feet are, are condemned to remain spectators at a ball without daring to take part. Waltzes, polkas and galops, with all their catchy charm, ring in their ears like a perpetual irony of fate. This deprivation is all the harder for them as the taste for dance is innate in the Valaisans...”
Mr. de Chastonay goes on to say:
“Mario's account is delightful. However, it seems to me that she too readily admitted that in mountain parishes, dancing between the sexes is almost unknown. In Vercorin's town square, I've seen young men and women
young men and women dance their hearts out. There must be another reason why girls don't take part in the dance on the patron saint's day.
Could it be that this custom has something to do with the Confrérie de Saint-Boniface, which used to organize the patronal feast? Members of the Confrérie also organized the afternoon feast outside the choir.
In the Middle Ages, these entertainments were half-religious, half-profane. Later, they became increasingly secular. However, the serious and dignified Confrères are rarely seen waltzing on the arms of young girls.
Hesitant to go that far, they will have been content - for want of a better word - to dance among themselves.”
Ask yourselves!
