Périgueux

Périgueux, a town of France, formerly capital of Périgord, now in the department of Dordogne, and situated on the right bank of the Isle, a tributary of the Dordogne, 95 miles by rail NE. of Bordeaux. It consists of the ancient city, which is gloomy in aspect and has narrow streets, with numerous houses and other remains of mediæval and Renaissance architecture, and the Puy St Front, which until 1269 was a separate and a rival town. The cathedral of St Front is a Byzantine edifice, said to be a copy of St Mark's at Venice, built in 984-1047, but spoilt by 'restoration' in 1865. The town museum is especially rich in Roman and other antiquities. Statues of Montaigne, Fénélon, and the soldiers Daumesnil and Bugeaud adorn public places in the town. Iron is mined and worked, and woollens are manufactured. The celebrated pâtés de Périgueux, made of partridges and truffles, are largely exported. Pop. (1891) 30,725. Périgueux, a town of the highest antiquity, is the Gallic Vesunna mentioned by Cæsar. The Romans built another town on the opposite side of the river at the junction of five Roman roads. Close to the modern town are the remains of a vast amphitheatre, aqueducts, baths, and temples. The tower of Vesunna is the most remarkable fragment of Roman architecture. It is 89 feet high, 200 feet in circumference, and has walls 6 feet thick, but has neither doors nor windows. Its purpose is not known. The district of Périgord is noted for its Caves (q.v.) and archaeological finds. See FLINT INSTRUMENTS.