Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, France: An Industrial Architectural Heritage of the Enlightenment and Its Modern Rebirth

Nestled in the Jura region near Besançon, France, a semicircular complex stands silently, bearing witness to the brilliance of 18th-century industrial revolution and the practice of Enlightenment ideals—the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans (Saline royale d'Arc-et-Senans), inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982. Designed by the visionary architect Claude-Nicolas Ledoux, this saltworks was commissioned during the reign of Louis XVI in 1775 and completed four years later, marking Europe’s first industrial complex integrating production, residence, and social aspirations.