Saint-Pierre-de-Clages
The village of Saint-Pierre-de-Clages (outdated German Zgletsch ) is a district of the municipality of Chamoson in the Conthey district in the French-speaking part of the Swiss canton of Valais . It is also the only Swiss book village (Village Suisse du Livre) .
Location, residents
Saint-Pierre-de-Clages is located on a natural, massive cone of debris inclined towards the south in the Rhone Valley . These deposits of limestone and marl rocks caused by weathering and further transport of the torrent Losentse which in its course pebbles from the Morcles ceiling , specifically the southern slopes of the Grand Muveran and the western flank of the Haut-de-Cry was deposited here. Chamoson is about a kilometer above. Both settlements form the largest contiguous wine-growing area in Valais. About 630 inhabitants live in the village, whose livelihoods are mainly viticulture and tourism.
history
The first written mention of this settlement relates to the priory and the church connected with it (ecclesias de Clagiis) and dates from 1153. It is in a document from Eugene III. the Saint-Pierre-de-Clages designated as a prior post of the Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Martin d'Ainay of Lyon in the Parish Sedunum ( Sion ).
The Bishop of Sitten took over the priory in 1580. During the time of Baron Kaspar von Stockalper (1609–1691), who expanded the Simplon Pass , the priory building was converted into a salt depot. At the same time, a horse changing and resting station was established in the village. In the 18th century, the village had become an important rest stop on the trade and travel route between Milan and Lyon .
Attractions
Saint-Pierre church
The Romanesque church building is a three-aisled hall church of low height from the 11th century with an octagonal crossing and bell tower from the third quarter of the 12th century.
The shape and material of the tower are special for Switzerland: It is octagonal, in accordance with the principles of Cluny Abbey, and the lower of the two attached floors is made of brick . The upper storey is more finely structured and made of the beige tuff typical of the region.
The nave is built from rubble stones from the stratified limestone, marl and slate of the area, which are characteristic of the northern slopes of the valley along the Saillon , Chamoson and Leytron lines . On the east side, the choir ends with a semicircular apse , which is accompanied by two smaller apses. Special architectural parts such as the portal and the window frames of the outer facade are again made from the yellow-beige tuff from the region. Above the main portal there is a painting in the tympanum that is now hardly recognizable . Further frescoes are visible as exposed fragments in the interior of the church.
Town houses
In Saint-Pierre-de-Clages some remarkable town houses have been preserved, which bear witness to the rural and bourgeois prosperity of centuries past. Thanks to numerous business uses, visitors interested in architecture can look at the old interior, and occasionally one of the old Valais soapstone stoves.
Book village
The Swiss book village has existed since 1993. In mostly very old town houses of Saint-Pierre-de-Clages there are numerous second-hand bookshops that encourage rummaging. Saint-Pierre-de-Clages is one of the 22 European book villages so far (as of 2008). This initiative, in which 13 European countries are currently involved, sends a specific signal for the comprehensive cultural significance of the book. A three-day book festival is held here at the end of August each year.
literature
- Marcel Burri: Get to know nature in Valais. The rocks. Edition Pillet, Martigny 1992.
- Niklaus Flüeler, Lukas Gloor , Isabell Rucki: Guide culturel de la Suisse. Ex Libris Verlag, Zurich 1982.
- Albano Hugon: Saint-Pierre-de-Clages. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- Francis de Quervain: The usable rocks of Switzerland. Kümmerly & Frey, Bern 1969.
- Patrick Elsig: L'église romane de Saint-Pierre-de-Clages (VS). (Swiss Art Guide, No. 684/685, series 69). Edited by the Society for Swiss Art History GSK. Bern 2000, ISBN 978-3-85782-684-9 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ German place-name booklet for western Switzerland, Ticino and Graubünden. 2nd ed., Edit. and exp. by August Steiger. Hirzen, Basel 1953, p. 19.
- ↑ Cramer / Sack (Ed.), Technology of Brick Building in Europe in the Middle Ages, ISBN 3-937251-99-5 , p. 62 ff., Jürg Goll, Brick building in the central alpine region, p. 65, an exception in the Valais
Coordinates: 46 ° 12 ' N , 7 ° 14' E ; CH1903: 584436 / 115648