Figeac

Figeac is a commune in the Lot department, situated in the valley of the Cele river, a tributary of the Lot. The town has a compact medieval centre of warm yellow-grey sandstone with remarkable architecture from the twelfth through fifteenth centuries, including the church of Saint-Sauveur and several noble houses with external soleilhos, open upper loggias unique to this part of the Quercy.

Figeac is the birthplace of Jean-Francois Champollion, the Egyptologist who deciphered the Rosetta Stone in 1822. The Place des Ecritures, an outdoor installation with a giant reproduction of the Rosetta Stone inscribed in the paving, is situated below the Champollion museum.

For pilgrims, Figeac is the most significant urban stop in the early Lot section, providing full services, excellent architecture, and the unusual encounter with Egyptian hieroglyphics in the town square.