AVALLON, a town of France, capital of an arrondissement in the department of Yonne, 34m. S.S.E. of Auxerre on a branch of the P.L.M. railway. Pop. Avallon (Aballo) was the seat of a viscounty in the mediaeval duchy of Burgundy. The church of St. Lazare (12th century) has two western portals sculptured in ornate Romanesque style ; the tower on the left of the façade was rebuilt in the 17th century. The Tour de l'Horloge (15th century), pierced by a gateway through which passes the Grande Rue, contains a museum on its second floor. Remains of ancient fortifications, including seven flanking towers, are still to be seen. There is a statue of Vauban, the military engineer. The public institutions include the sub prefecture, a tribunal of first instance, and a communal college. Trade is in wood, wine, leather, live-stock, grain, and wool.