Of the 25 springs that flow through the village, the Fontaine Sainte-Marie-du-Mont is undoubtedly the most important. But it is above all the most visible, thanks to its monumental fountain in the shape of an oratory, sheltering an abundant spring flowing at the foot of the limestone cliffs on the Liassic marl. Already mentioned in February 1236 under the name "fontem qui dicitur fons sancte Marie" in a donation from the parish priest "Mauricius" of Cohons to the priory of Saints-Geosmes, the Fontaine Sainte-Marie has always been reputed for the therapeutic virtues of its waters (the use of which has been lost), as well as for its prophylactic virtues. |The waters of the Sainte-Marie-du-Mont fountain, which flow freely down the hillside, once fed the ditches of Rénier de Nogent's short-lived stronghold in the 13th century. Running through the middle of the village, these waters, which have always been both practical and fun for everyone to use, have long been a source of conflict and litigation, as ancient as it is numerous, so coveted was the water from this fountain. The fountain's monument, made of Cohons stone and dating from 1778 (probably restored), features a semicircular vault under which the water flows into a first basin where the animals used to come to drink, and then into a larger basin used as an open-air wash-house. Above the vault, an oratory-shaped aedicula with a gable roof topped by a stone cross, features three large arched niches. The first, in the centre, houses a large statue of the Virgin Mary. To its left, old photos show a statue of Saint Anne carrying Mary as a child, and to the right a statue of Saint Lawrence, where we would have expected a statue of Saint Joseph, perhaps symbolising the example of the Holy Family. The statue of St Lawrence was broken several decades ago, and was replaced by a bronze statue of the Sacred Heart (said to have come from the village nuns' house), painted in a stone tone in the 1980s. Stored in the church, this statue was replaced during the renovation of the fountain in 2000 by a copy of Saint Anne made by the Grépin stone-cutting firm in Cusey, modelled on another statue of Saint Anne in the chapel of the same name in Buzon.|Lastly, an old fragment of a 15th-century trinity in the wall to the right of the fountain may have once stood in place of the summit cross that can be seen today.|In 2000, the fountain, which had suffered from the effects of the years and the vagaries of the weather, was given a thorough overhaul as part of the "Pierres et Terroir" programme. The entire facade of the kiosk and the area around the washhouse were repointed with natural hydraulic lime and cleaned, after the paving stones had been removed and the ground lowered, in order to create a concrete support underneath. The whole of the "Fontaine Sainte-Marie" in Cohons, including the fountain, washhouse and drinking trough, has been listed in the supplementary inventory of historic monuments since 24 December 1986.
La fontaine Sainte-Marie de Cohons
