Peddlers

Peddlers were itinerant merchants who traveled abroad to trade in the “German-speaking regions” (German-speaking countries: German-speaking Switzerland, Austria, Germany, and Alsace). As farmers in their villages, they would set out to trade during the off-season to improve their daily lives. These traveling merchants would set out from Nancy-sur-Cluses without any merchandise. They would stock up along the way, particularly at the large Swiss fairs. Some would make their fortune abroad. Deeply attached to their roots, they used part of their wealth to fund the construction of the church and chapels in their native village. They also embellished their homes. The peddlers’ houses differ from traditional Savoyard rural architecture in their cut-stone frames, which, in the oldest examples (16th and 17th centuries), form ogee arches. And above all, their lintels bear the “4 de chiffre” coat of arms. In the hamlet of La Frasse, on Rue des Colporteurs, the stone cellar-attic complex built in 1671 is the most extraordinary remnant in Savoie of the vast wave of merchant migration from days gone by. Its terrace features the oldest “4 de chiffre” mark (1679) and decorated jambs. The houses, granaries, and twin ovens of Nancy-sur-Cluses are typical of Savoy. They also bear witness to the rich history of peddling in Nancy-sur-Cluses, which spanned the 17th and 18th centuries.