ClasséCave · protected 1974Grotte ornée paléolithiquePhoto: Pierre Goujet · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Grotte ornée paléolithique · Photo: Pierre Goujet · CC BY-SA 4.02historic monuments
History of Massat · Monuments historiques
2 historic monuments, the oldest from prehistory
The Culture ministry lists 2 historic monuments in Massat: 1 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 1 inscrit (the second level). Massat’s first monument was protected in 1974.
Monuments historiques
2
Classé
1
the highest protection
Inscrit
1
the second level
Oldest part
Prehistory
of any listed monument
Homes before 1919
30%
median compared town 7.4%
In pictures
Monuments of Massat in pictures
Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its license; names open the monument’s page.
Map
Where Massat’s monuments stand
Every monument with a point on the ministry’s list; the larger, darker dots are classé.
ClasséInscrit
Tap a dot to open the monument’s page: its record, photo and the monuments around it.
2 monuments by protection
1 Classé1 Inscrit
Classé is the higher protection: any work on the building needs the State’s permission. Work on an inscrit building must be declared to the State in advance. Around both, building work in sight of the monument (usually within 500 m) needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
Points as the ministry gives them: a monument spread over several plots has one point.
Classé
One classé monument in Massat
Classé is France’s highest protection for a building, held by about a third of the monuments on the list. Each card opens the monument’s page.
Inscrit
One inscrit monument in Massat
Inscrit is the second level of protection: the building is worth keeping, and any work on it must be declared.
InscritChurch · protected 1985Église de la Nativité-de-la-ViergePhoto: Tom31190 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Age of homes
30% of homes in Massat were built before 1919
Main homes by when they were finished, beside the median compared French town (the tick).
30%
Before 1919
16%
1919–45
20%
1946–70
12%
1971–90
9.8%
1991–2005
12%
2006 on
MassatMedian compared French town
30% of its main homes were built before 1919; the median compared French town has 7.4%. More of them were finished before 1919 than in any other period (30%).
INSEE, census 2023: main homes (résidences principales) only; second homes and empty homes aren’t dated.
Neighbors
Historic monuments in the towns around Massat
| Town | Residents | Monuments | Classé | Protected area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Massat | 749 | 2 | 1 | — |
| Saint-Girons | 6,008 | 5 | 1 | — |
| Tarascon-sur-Ariège | 3,085 | 5 | 3 | — |
| Foix | 9,934 | 4 | 3 | Yes |
In brief
Massat in brief
Massat’s oldest monument, Grotte ornée paléolithique, dates from prehistory. All told, the list holds 2 historic monuments, 1 of them classé, including Grotte ornée paléolithique. Of its homes, 30% were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town. The rest is about typical: Léon Galy-Gasparrou (1850) and Georges Galy-Gasparrou (1896) were born here before 1900; and the list grew between 1974 and 1985.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Monuments historiques. France protects buildings at two levels. Classé, the higher (about a third of the list), means any work needs the State’s permission; inscrit means work must be declared to the State in advance. The Culture ministry’s Mérimée base lists every protected building, and this page counts them.
- Partly protected. Many entries protect part of a building only (its façades and roofs, a staircase, a painted room). Each counts as one monument, like a fully protected one.
- Where a monument is counted. In the commune named on its protection, moved to today’s commune where communes have since merged. A monument listed for several communes counts in each.
- Sites patrimoniaux remarquables. Since 2016 France’s protected historic areas (the former secteurs sauvegardés, ZPPAUP and AVAP) share one name. Inside one, building work follows the area’s plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
- What isn’t here. Protected objects (furniture, organs, paintings), old buildings with no protection, UNESCO World Heritage listings and labels such as “Plus Beaux Villages de France” aren’t on this list, so this page doesn’t count them.
- No History Grade yet. Everything on this page is described, not graded: France’s History Grade isn’t built yet.
Questions about the history of Massat
How many historic monuments are there in Massat?
The Culture ministry lists 2 historic monuments in Massat: 1 classé and 1 inscrit.
Which monuments in Massat are classé?
One: Grotte ornée paléolithique.
How old are the homes in Massat?
30% of its main homes were built before 1919 (median compared French town: 7.4%).
France has no History Grade yet: this page describes, it doesn’t grade.
Sources: Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée base on POP (immeubles protégés au titre des monuments historiques), October 2026 · Ministère de la Culture, sites patrimoniaux remarquables, October 2026 · INSEE, census 2023 (main homes by build period) · Wikidata and Wikipedia (people born here) · Wikimedia Commons and Wikidata (photos of the monuments, each with its own credit and license) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated October 30, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.