It is one of the oldest in the town of Samoëns, in Haute-Savoie, which has not been altered due to destruction. Of Baroque influence, it is one of the nine chapels present in each of the nine hamlets of Samoëns. The building in the hamlet of Des Vallons was founded on August 24, 1636 and is dedicated to Saint Jacques, Saint-Philibert and Saint-Joseph. This in gratitude for their protection during an epidemic of plague in 1630: “… Desiring to accomplish and carry out devotion by eulx prinse in the month of December of the year 1630 at which time, it rains in divine mercy to visit part of the people of the present place and the reminder of Samoëns of the plague and contagion… ”
What if the Saints had drawn a mudslide upon them in order to protect the village? In 1831, an event marked the history of the building: a flow rolled down the slope of the Criou. She brought the snow up to the steeple of the chapel, staying there until August 15 of the same year. Another historical testimony: the painting placed above the altar of the chapel. This is a work by Joseph Rabiato, painted in 1765. This painting, by the appointed portrait painter of the middle-class of central Valais, represents the votive saints of the chapel, placed under the name of Saints Jacques, Philippe and Joseph. It was recently removed from the altar for a well-deserved restoration.
Discovering the hamlet and its chapel, as well as the eight others and the multitude of riches they contain is possible. There are several well-marked partial circuits to discover these treasures of the Haut-Giffre Valley. Guided tours are also organized in winter and summer, the opportunity to admire, for example, the botanical garden La Jaÿsinia or the other chapels of the hamlets of Samoëns