Paroles de Mélèze

Walking through the village of Vercorin, it's impossible not to notice at least some of the many inscriptions on the buildings. They are remarkable for their beauty, originality or historical, genealogical and heritage interest.
For several years now, these inscriptions - of which there are over forty - have been inventoried, deciphered, translated where necessary and explained. This rich documentation will soon be accessible to anyone with a cell phone via medallions, each bearing a QR code, installed near each building concerned.
The project will be presented in detail and officially inaugurated in the presence of its authors and the local authorities, under the aegis of the Association des Amis du Patrimoine de la Commune de Chalais, on Heritage Day on May 3, starting at 4pm in the Vercorin village square.

The “Paroles de Mélèze” project was initiated by two personalities who have been coming to their vacation home in Vercorin for over 25 years. They are Michel Borzykowski, a retired doctor, musician and photography enthusiast, and Michel Aberson, a retired lecturer at Lausanne University and specialist in ancient inscriptions. To enhance the project, they were supported by the Association des Amis du Patrimoine de la Commune de Chalais, the Société de Développement and Vercorin Tourisme, who contributed their expertise for the vernissage and project communication.
On the technical side, the young company Genius Loci supplied the software and the connected medals with the QR code inscribed in their center. Made in Switzerland, these brushed stainless steel medals have the following shape:

They allow you to see the inscriptions up close, and access comments (translation and description, explanations of particular terms, brief biographical comments on the people mentioned, genealogical elements, etc.). French, Latin, German and patois can be found side by side, often with abbreviations, initials and spelling.
The commentaries can also be translated into any number of languages via a cell phone.

This project, inaugurated on May 3, is unique in more ways than one:
- It involves an entire village, Vercorin, with its forty or so connected medals.
- The inscriptions on the façades have been photographed, analyzed and deciphered in a scientific and professional manner.
- In the future, the system will be gradually expanded: connected medals can be added, linked to additional inscriptions, and the content of the system enriched with new historical, architectural and heritage elements.
- The project is supported by a number of private and public partners, all of whom are convinced of the value of this project for transmitting the wealth of local heritage to a wide audience in a highly accessible way.