Saint-Loup-de-Varennes

Commune in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France

(2020–2026) Gérard Rigaud^[1]Area8.32 km² (3.21 sq mi)Population1,226 • Density150/km² (380/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)INSEE/Postal codeElevation171–205 m (561–673 ft)
(avg. 191 m or 627 ft)¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Saint-Loup-de-Varennes (French pronunciation: [sɛ̃ lu də vaʁɛn], literally Saint-Loup of Varennes) is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France.

The commune is home to the world's oldest surviving image in the world, View from the Window at Le Gras. The image was first taken in 1826.

Geography

It is 6 km (3.7 mi) south of the centre of Chalon-sur-Saône.

Historical significance

Nicéphore Niépce, the inventor of photography, lived in Saint-Loup-de-Varennes, where he died in 1833. Most or all of his photographs, including one taken in 1827 and now the oldest known surviving camera photograph, were made at Le Gras, his ancestral family estate in this village.

See also

• Communes of the Saône-et-Loire department

References

• Niépce website (in French)

External links