A revisit

For reasons too complicated to even try to explain (the main reason being curiosity) we decided to pay the Eglise Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption in Gourdon another visit.

Luxure (lust)

The first time we had heard about this church dates years back, when guests we had staying in one of our gîtes told us that they wanted to visit that church because it was quite extraordinary. We visited the church for the first time also in 2007.
The purpose of this particular visit was to have a good look at the capitals, of which there are approx. 90 present, where I had photographed only 17 on previous visits. On a nice sunny day we packed the car with our picnic gear and drove off to Gourdon.

Monstres anguipèdes (lower part of the body has the form of a snake)

My usual source gave me the following hint: "Gourdon has mainly groups of primitive capitals, with lots of similar lions, monsters, human heads and floral motives, with occasionally a human figure.".

That was correct, however, there is also a handful of capital depicting well-known themes, such as some of the capital sins and other vices, such as lust, temptation, greed, slander, promiscuity.

Monstres léonins à face humaine (lion-like creatures with human faces)

This information, and where to find those particular capitals I found in a brochure available in the church. Apart from those capitals this church also boasts a number of frescoes or what is left of them. The church itself is very light, which makes studying the various decorations relatively easy.
On the outside there is quite a bit of sculpture to be seen as well; there is big number of modillons adorning the roof edges; they show geometrical patterns, but also human and animal heads, floral motives, wood shavings motive, etc.

Modillons

Even the corbels supporting the roof edge of the bell tower (1889!) are richly sculpted.
After having looked around for a good three quarters of an hour we installed our camping table and chairs in the shadow of the church and enjoyed our well-earned picnic. When I got home I still had quite a job sorting out and manipulating between 150 and 200 pictures. And only then I realised that in my eagerness to photograph everything in an organised way that I had missed out on two capitals, in a high window just above the entrance to the church!

Roof edge of the bell tower

Click here for the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle.

Birthday outing

One of the habits I took up from my partner is to organise a special outing on my birthday, instead of spending the whole day as if it were a normal working day.

Sainte-Madeleine, facade

One of the things I had on my list for a long time was Vézelay. We had been there twice, once in 2004 and once in 2007. Strangely enough I had only 5 (five!) pictures of Vézelay in my archives, which given the fact that I have never been shy when it comes to shooting lots of pictures is very strange, to say the least. The church obviously had not made an unforgettable impression on me. Reason enough to drive for two and a half hours to renew the acquaintance. In view of the long trip we headed off quite early, hence we were in time in Vézelay to attend the mass, which was sung utilizing Gregorian chants.

Sainte-Madeleine, narthex

A one hour mass was a bit too much for me; after 10 minutes I disappeared in order to have a good look at the exterior of the basilica and at the narthex. After half an hour I was joined by my partner, and together we admired the capitals of the narthex. By the time the mass was over we decided to go for lunch, and after having eaten we wandered through the mediaeval streets back to the basilica.

Sainte-Madeleine,interior

There we had ample time to view the inside of the church and the beautiful capitals. Unfortunately the crypt was temporarily closed for maintenance, and it would only be re-opened in a couple of weeks. Why I ever had considered this church to be not very interesting became a bigger riddle with each view and each new capital I saw…. Well, to err is human, is not it?

Sainte-Madeleine,capitel

In the meantime the Musée de l'oeuvre Violet Le-Duc had opened its doors. The museum hosts a number of original capitals of which a copy is installed in the church itself (however, the basilica has an immense number of original capitals). This museum turned out to be very interesting as well.

La Cordelle

After the basilica we wandered off to find a chapel located just outside the walls of Vézelay, La Cordelle or La Chapelle de Sainte-Croix. The path to the chapel came past the spot where a cross was erected in memory of the call to arms for the second crusade by Bernard of Clairvaux in 1146.

Monument Bernard of Clairvaux

Although Vézelay turned out to be very interesting indeed, we decided that it was time to go home, after a long trip, an exhaustive visit to basilica and museum and another long trip in store. Well, go home…

Saint-Père, Notre Dame

Via Bourgogne Romane I had received a clue saying that Saint-Père boasted an interesting Gothic church, something not very common in Burgundy. And since we passed through Saint-Père on the way back, why not make a brief stop there? Between the parking area where we had abandoned the car and the Notre-Dame we bumped into the remains of an old Romanesque church, the Saint-Pierre.

Saint-Père, Saint-Pierre

This day out had been a great success; pity only, that the crypt had been closed….
Click here for the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle.

Original or copy?

The Musée Ochier in Cluny has the great portal of Cluny III on display, or what is left of it. And that is not much, considering that the whole portal was blown up in 1810.

Grand portail Cluny III - Musée Ochier Cluny

One of the best preserved pieces is the eagle, symbol of Saint John the Evangelist. There is nothing on the wall, at least as far as I recall, which points to the fact that this eagle might be a copy, and hence I have always believed that this eagle once was physically part of the narthex of Cluny III.

Musé Ochier - Cluny

Until one day I encountered a very similar eagle in the Louvre in Paris, albeit with tiny differences. The stone in the louvre looks more weathered, and the top bit of the broken off part at the underside of the eagle shows a V-shaped scratch which has a slightly different shape from the one in Cluny.

Louvre - Paris

It seemed that Cluny's eagle is a copy, whilst the Louvre houses the original. Wikipedia confirms this, and contains a reference to the inventory of the Louvre. The original of a Saint Peter, high on the left hand side of the portal, can be found in the USA.

Brochure Saint-Germain-des-Prés

When in Paris recently, we visited the church Saint-Germain-des-Prés for the second time. This time I found a brochure there, saying that the capitals in the nave were copies, whilst those in the choir were still original. The choir is not accessible for visitors, and the distance between transept and the capitals is too big to take free hand pictures, even with flash and fast film setting.

Choir - Saint-Germain-des-Prés

Our visit to Paris coincided with the visit to Paris of an Australian Facebook friend from a closed photo group, whom we could finally meet in the flesh. The lady in question takes very nice pictures indeed, hence I popped the question: would she mind trying to photograph the capitals? This was not met with deaf ears, and a month later, after she had returned to Australia, I received a set of photographs.

Capital - choir of Saint-Germain-des-Prés (picture courtesy of B. Jacobs - Australia)

And since I love to share things with others who might be interested I sent a set to Bourgogne Romane, together with another series taken during my visit to the Musée de Cluny in Paris.
Quickly I received a mail concerning those batches of photos: at least one of the "original" capitals in the choir appeared to be a copy of a real original I had shot in the Musée de Cluny!

The same capital - Musée de Cluny

From which the conclusion may be drawn that not all museum captions are necessarily complete, and also that the brochures one find in churches not necessarily are to be taken for gospel. However, gospel can be found elsewhere in most churches.

Click here for the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle.

Wait long enough… and you shall find

Text on an information panel in Cluny

Long time ago I read on an information panel somewhere in Cluny that, when demolishing a number of mediaeval houses on the Petite Place du Marché between 1860 and 1866, several claire-voies of those houses were saved and are on display in Musée Ochier in Cluny. Recently another one was discovered in the façade of the château in Burnand (private property, partially rented out as a B&B).

Château de Burnand

In 2012 we asked the Dutch caretaker of the château (the owners lived at the time on Bali) if we could have a look at the building. However, she was very busy at the time, and asked us to give her a call later that year. When we bumped into her some month later in Cluny she told us that the owners were divorced, that she had been sacked more or less on the spot, and that one of the owners would move to France and take care of the château herself.

Claire-voie - Burnand

That was the end of our potential visit to the château, so we thought. However, the Office de Tourisme in Saint-Gengoux regularly organises excursions along the various B&B's in the area, so maybe that could be our next option. Unfortunately, when Burnand was on the program we were not able to make it. Recently we saw another chance: there was going to be a free concert at the château, which gave us a chance to see this (Gothic) claire-voie from Cluny on the pretext of a cultural outing.

Capitals - Burnand

And we found it. The outside of the château is worth a visit anyway. It is very picturesquely located on the edge of Burnand, a village which hosts an interesting Romanesque church. I can be very brief about the concert: after two minutes we had had enough. I rather pay an entrance fee for a professional group of musicians than listening for over an hour to a dress rehearsal of some not (yet) very good amateurs. That is a privilege I happily grant their family and friends!

Concert - château de Burnand

Click here for the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle.

A trip to the Berry (part 3 and last)

Apart from what was no my homework list, courtesy of “Bourgogne Romane”, I had found (in my newly acquired travel guide) some more thing to be visited.
Those places were in Cher (18) Bourges and Noirlac, and in Indres (36) La Berthenoux and Vic.

Cathedral - Bourges

We had planned Bourges (18) for an outing with the three of us, and that was an excellent choice. The centre of Bourges is interesting, with lots of half-timbered houses, and also the gothic cathedral, with a Romanesque tympanum was more than worth the visit. A pity it was so cold that day!

Abbey church - Noirlac

Noirlac (18) we visited the same day; the Cistercian abbey there is still in reasonably good state. Although not as impressive as the three sisters in Provence (Le Thoronet, Sénanque and Silvacane), the sobriety and simplicity of these huge complexes always impresses me.

Frescoes - Vic

Vic (36), part of Nohant-Vic, turned out to be a golden find. The church boasts an impressive collection of frescoes, covering the walls of choir and apse almost completely. The frescoes were only discovered in the 19th century, and George Sand, who lived in a château nearby, has seen these frescoes just after they had emerged from under a layer of plasterwork.

Left and right : narrow passages berrichons - Le Berthenoux

La Berthenoux (36) boast a number of interesting capatals, and has two very narrow passages berrichons (resp. 45 and 60 cm wide). We have spent only four days in this area, but in those four days we managed to see quite a lot of interesting things!

The link to the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle can be found here.

Summary maps of Romanesque and Byzantine churches

In the past I have published a number of blogs dedicated to a number of interactive maps, all based on various pages of website “Bourgogne Romane”.
Below I have summarized everything. The link to the relevant page of “Bourgogne Romane” is given in the caption of the pictures of the maps.

1. Pages as complete as possible (Burgundy):

1a. Link to map La Côte d’Or (21)

Link to page La Côte d'Or (21)

1b. Link to map La Nièvre (58)

Link to page La Nièvre (58)

1c. Link to map La Sâone-et-Loire (71)

Link to page La Saône-et-Loire (71)

1d. Link to map L'Yonne (89)

Link to page L'Yonne (89)

The maps above also contain links to a modest selection of churches in the departments bordering Burgundy. The links are recognisable as traffic signs for max. speed limits, where the "speed" is the number of that department (03, 69, 42, etc.).

2. Pages with a very restricted choice from available material (no attempt to completeness).

2a. Link to map Romanesque churches in Europe (except in Burgundy)

Link to page L'Europe Romane

2b. Link to map Byzantine churches in Eastern-Europe and the Middle-East

Link to page Byzantine Art

The link to the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle can be found here.

A trip to the Berry (part 2)

My homework list for the Berry region contained the following place names:
Déols, Ardentes, Châtillon-sur-Indre, Neuvy-Pailloux, Neuvy-St-Sepulcre, Saint-Gaultier, Saint-Genou.

Berry

A quick look on the map and the calendar (to check the time available) showed that we certainly would skip Châtillon-sur-Indre; that was just a trifle too far away from where we stayed. We had chosen Bourges for a day out with the three of us, and the other churches we might be able to fit in during the time my son was occupying himself. Because we did not have a Michelin Green Guide for this area, we purchased one and found some more interesting things to visit in the area. Below a very concise summary, including a link to the appropriate Picasa album.

Lanterne des Morts - Saint-Genou

Déols : an interesting part of an abbey church, with some remnants of the abbey buildings surrounding it.
Saint-Genou : an interesting church, inside as well as outside. On the edge of the town we found a Lanterne des Morts, a sort of beacon possibly in memory of the dead. There are more in this area; the origin and purpose of these structures is rather obscure. Most of them have been built in the 12th century and are mainly concentrated in the area which formed the Duchy of Aquitaine in the 10th century.

Apse - Neuvy-Pailloux

Ardentes : the church there was locked, but when we came back a few days later, we obtained the key without any problems from the town hall. Interesting church.
Neuvy-Pailloux : most of the church had been demolished. The apse however has an interesting ceiling painting.
Neuvy-Saint-Sépulchre : the first rotunda church I have seen in France. The church was built based on instructions of Eudes de Déols, who had seen the Saint-Sépulchre church in Jerualem.

Rotunda - Neuvy-Saint-Sépulchre

Because the example was a round church, the “old” rectangular building was partially demolished. However, when new pilgrims arrived from the holy land, they had seen that the church in Jerusalem had a rectangular part as well. That was the reason why demolition of the old rectangular church was stopped.
Saint-Gaultier : interesting church, with nicely decorated chevet.

Chevet - Saint-Gaultier

For the churches not on my homework list, see the next blog.

The link to the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle can be found here.

A trip to the Berry (part 1)

Although the emphasis of this blog lies on Burgundy, every so often I deviate a little from this area. When we were planning a trip into the Berry region, I had asked my walking encyclopedia on Romanesque churches for some advice concerning this area.

Source: Gouvernements généraux du Berry, du Nivernois, et du Bourbonois, Robert de Vaugondy, 1753

We went there to meet up with my son, who was going to spend a day with some local guitar restorers, and decided to do some sightseeing as well since we were there. Berry is a former Duchy and it was until 1790 a province of France with as a capital Bourges. Both departments Indre (36) and Cher (18) in the Centre region form more or less the old Berry.

Saint-Désiré (03)

We stayed in the Southern part of Indre, near La Châtre, famous because George Sand lived around there.
It was a totally unknown area for me. The only thing I knew had something to do with the Berry were the “passages berrichons”, narrow wall openings on both side of the choir in a church, giving access to the transept from the nave. These wall openings one finds sporadically in some Romanesque churches in Burgundy.

Crossing - Saint-Désiré (03)

And further I had heard and seen something of the “Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry”, and everyone who has ever done some calligraphy will admit that this is a jewel of illumination.
On our way to the Berry we drove through Allier (03) and halfway Montluçon and our destination we saw a sign “Saint-Désiré Eglise Romane”. Since we were a trifle on the early side we decided to pay a quick visit to this church.

Crypt - Saint-Désiré (03)

The church had once been part of a priory, and it had an 11th century crypt built around the grave of a former bishop of Bourges, Saint-Désiré. The church had been shortened in the 19th century and partially heavily restored (see “Wikipedia - Église Saint-Désiré de Saint-Désiré”), but what is left over is still quite interesting.
And this church was not even on my list!

The link to the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle can be found here.

The deep South

Sometimes one is forced to stay somewhere, and sometimes one finds without really looking for it something that appears to be worth the detour, as the Michelin green guide says.

Saint John's cathedral - 's-Hertogenbosch

That happened when we had to stay in the Southern (Roman Catholic) part of Netherlands for a couple of days in order to acquire a new passport. The Romanesque churches of Maastricht as well as the one in Roermond I only knew from the pictures on “L'Europe Romane”, and both towns are located less than an hour drive from Den Bosch, where we were staying.

Basilica of our Lady - Maastricht

In Maastricht we could park the car in a parking garage next to the Basilica of our Lady, which was open to the public, and which turned out to be a revelation. The capitals in the apse, where it is too dark to see anything properly, can be lit after inserting a € 0.50 coin in a switch box, an investment more than worth it. The outside of the church, in Mosan and Rhineland style is very impressive. The architecture is completely different from the one we know in Burgundy. Only when we left the church I saw the notice “No photographing”; too late, fortunately!

Basilica of our Lady - Maastricht

The Saint Servatius basilica I found, at least from the inside, less interesting. However, I must add that the Emperor’s hall (certainly worth a visit) is closed for visitors during winter, and in summer can only be visited during guided tours. However, the treasury with among other things the reliquary of Saint-Servatius made up for what we missed.

Basilica of Saint Servatius - Maastricht

On our way back we made a stop in Roermond, where we found (with difficulty) the Minster of our Lady. This church however was closed, and in winter only open on Saturdays during 2 hours, and in summer on weekdays during 3 hours. Although we managed to peer inside through a glass door, I would have preferred to walk around at my own leasure.

Minster of our Lady - Roermond

Having been born and bred in the Calvinistic Western part of the Netherlands, the almost Burgundian atmosphere in the Southern part of the country was a pleasant surprise to me, even on a cold, windy day in winter. I will certainly go back to Maastricht if we ever happen to be in the vicinity on a warm, sunny summer’s day!

The link to the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle can be found here.

Closed for renovations

We have seen almost all churches in the vicinity, inside and outside. However, there are still two churches on our list of buildings of which the inside could do with some proper photographs.

2014 Interior - Buffières

A group of people have been busy for a couple of years now, during the summer, with the restauration of a ceiling painting in the apse of the church of Buffières. During winter there is no work done, but the scaffolding is still there, which makes it impossible to take some proper pictures of the apse. An article in a local paper suggested that the works would be finished in August 2014, but a visual inspection in September denied that, and a phone call to the organisation that finances the restoration learned that the work will continue in 2015.

2014 Interior - Milly-Lamartine

The church in Milly-Lamartine has been closed for a couple of years due to danger of falling debris. When we decided to check again on a day the town hall would be open, we noticed that some restauration work had started. The roofers that were occupied with it had left the side portal of the church open, which enabled me to have a quick snoop inside. The renovations should be finished before May 2015, according to a sign outside. The falling debris sign however is still nailed to the door.

2014 Bell tower - Ougy

Ougy has a church which has been amply covered by me. When we passed by there for a completely different reason, we noticed scaffolding and a notice board about the restauration of the church. Hopefully they will be able to do something about the moisture ingress, a problem of which a lot of old Romanesque churches are suffering.

The link to the website of La Tuilerie de Chazelle can be found here.