Barre-Des-Cevennes, FR being encounter — 1956

Two gendarmes, identified in investigator J. Tyrode's account as M. Barboule and M. Simon, reported an encounter near Barre-des-Cévennes in early 1956 at about 1 a.m. They were returning from their rounds and pushing their bicycles toward the village when an unusual noise attracted their attention. They described a dark disc moving toward a level area, reddish openings, and light associated with its dome. A smaller luminous sphere reportedly emerged and traveled around a nearby hill. Humanlike silhouettes were seen outside the larger object while the sphere was away. The men described an inability to act normally during the observation, and one reported continuing trouble with his watch afterward. The case was investigated retrospectively and published in Lumières dans la Nuit, with an English version in the February 1980 MUFON UFO Journal. No exact day is securely supplied. The illustration uses Early 1956 and reconstructs the two officers' mountain-road viewpoint, with the object's dimensions, silhouettes, and precise terrain remaining illustrative.