The lime kiln is a factory producing quicklime for agriculture and construction. Leaning against the hillside, the pyramid-shaped masonry trunk, contained by buttresses, opens out at the top through the throat at the level of the quarry where limestone, marble and coal are poured in alternating beds. The lime is discharged at the bottom through arched openings.
The Jocaillé or Pièce lime kiln, owned by the Lords of Vassé, was already in use in 1777. It was rebuilt by Auguste Osou around 1865. It burned wood, then coal, "heating" the magnesian limestone from the Régale quarry.
It ceased operating around 1905, a victim of the fuel crisis caused by the long distances involved in transporting coal.
It was probably the last establishment of this type in the region. From this time onwards, chemical fertilisers began to compete with liming.
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