Lido of the Marignanais and Châteauneuvais, the Jaï is a long and narrow sandy-silt coastline that separates the Bolmon and Berre ponds, and whose extremities hug the airport runways to the east and the Palunette district in Châteauneuf-lès-Martigues to the west
Is this formation the fruit of nature's work or the result of man's action? Or both at the same time? No one really knows
Until the Second World War, kelp (seaweed and rockweed) was collected here for use as bedding, insulation and fertilizer
Asparagus and early grapes grew on these sunny shores
But it is above all its bourdigues or small canals linking the two ponds that have contributed to the wealth of Marignane. Attested as early as the 11th century, we know that there was one at the "Angle" of the pond of Bolmon, abandoned and probably silted up at the beginning of the 15th century. In 1448 the large bourdigue was opened, still visible, which was the subject of projects of extension and paving under Louise of Savoy in 1530. A house of the bourdigalier built in 1613 by Claude and Jeannet Arvel for Jean-Baptiste I de Covet (of which one sees the ruins) came to replace a hut described in the years 1520
In the 16th century, the Môle or "cargadou" appeared, which welcomed merchant ships coming from the Caronte channel with their finished products, but also a number of raw materials extracted from the quarries around the lake to build and embellish the monuments of the town. In the opposite direction, the wine from Marignane was exported by sea to foreign countries. Restored in the 18th century, it was redeveloped as a fishing port in 1900, enlarged in 1939, but still the smallest in France on the edge of the largest pond in Europe
Industrial activity took over the Jaï in the 19th century, notably through two factories, one of soda (the remains of the oven have survived), whose production fed the soap factories, the other of red madder dye, whose basins can still be seen
In the 20th century, sports and leisure facilities were built there, which are now part of the water sports structure. Currently disused, it was designed by architects Auguste Ello and Yves Castel, son and grandson of Gaston, founder of an agency that has provided plans for twenty buildings in Marignane
Today the Jaï is still a refuge for migratory birds. Fishing has been revived here
It also welcomes surfers, walkers and swimmers (the Jaï beach has been awarded the Blue Flag label since 2016 and Tourism and Disability since 2020). It is finally a place of entertainment in summer
Source Patrick Varrot, art historian - February 2021
