St-Martin (Chadenac)
Saint-Martin de Chadenac is a church building in Chadenac , a small town in the Charente-Maritime department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region , about 30 km southeast of Saintes and about 20 km southwest of Cognac . The former priory church preserves a high-ranking treasure of Romanesque architecture, its west facade and its archivolt sculpture.
history
Apart from the former priory church, no evidence is known of the Chadenac priory, which was subordinate to the Charroux Abbey . The priory, the origins of its church and its facade date from the 12th century.
The choir of the church was probably given a ribbed vault in the 13th century . The southern arm of the transept and the later extension to include a chapel were equipped with eight-part ribbed vaults in the 14th century.
In the Wars of Religion (1562–1598) the nave lost its barrel vault and the crossing lost its domed vault.
During the French Revolution (1793–1796) the priory or what was left of it was sold as a national property and demolished. During this time, the facade of the church was also seriously damaged.
In 1883 the church was classified as a "Monument Historique".
Parish Church of Saint Martin
Until the fall of the Chadenac priory, it was its priory church. The elaborate design of the outside and inside of the ship and the lavish sculpture of the facade bear witness to the lucrative income of the priory in the 12th century, supported by the mother monastery. In this regard, the close proximity of one of the main pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela was also important .
Interior
The church has a single nave, with a transept, a separate crossing , a rectangular choir and a chapel on the southern arm of the transept.
The ship is six bays long and has lost its former vaulting with a barrel and belt arches, in a rectangular cross-section, as a result of arson in the wars of religion. The arched belt on the transept, which is still preserved today, indicates that the vault of the ship was also sharpened. The yoke is subdivided by half-columns with a smooth surface, which are closed at the top with simple capitals and fighters without any ornamentation. The simple profile of the fighters is continued between the columns as a cantilevered cornice . Above this profile, the masonry of the wall is led to under the roof truss. Here you can still see the approaches of the bulge and the belt arches.
The fields between the pillars each contain a blind arcade with a round arch that rests on two slender columns on both sides. The arch of the smaller window, which also rests on two slender columns on both sides, runs parallel to the contour of this arch. This compression of columns and pairs of columns creates an interesting arrangement of the walls in the upper area, which does not require any further decorative ornaments.
About three quarters of the first yoke is taken up by the installation of a narthex with a gallery , with arched openings to the nave.
The open roof structure forms the upper end .
The former vaulting of the crossing with an eight-sided dome no longer exists, so that the roof structure can also be seen there. The openings around the crossing are covered with pointed arches that stand on pillars with a rectangular cross-section.
In the crossing a wide staircase with seven steps leads up to the level of the choir. It can be assumed that there is or was a crypt under the raised ground . The rectangular choir, with a flat end and a large central pointed arched window with tracery , is covered by a ribbed vault. The southern arm of the transept and the adjoining chapel have eight-part ribbed vaults.
An archaeological find from the 3rd century is exhibited in the ship. The text on his sign reads:
- "Torso of the god Mercurius , covered by a cloak, held by a fibula . From the 3rd century AD. This piece and many other damaged sculptures were reused in the foundations of a Merovingian chapel. "
Chadenac, capital in the ship
Chadenac, capital in the ship
Chadenac, capital in the ship
Torso of Mercurius, archaeological find
Outer shape
The nave is opened at its west gable by its three-storey façade, which dominates everything . The division into six bays can also be read on its long walls.
At the level of the cornice above the second storey of the facade, which is led around the corner, a two-part cornice strip that extends over the entire length connects to the outer wall. It consists of a cantilevered cornice and a barely bulging band underneath, both of which are decorated with rod ornaments. Below are five pillar templates with a right-angled cross-section, which correspond to the inner column arrangement. The template cross-section is reduced to zero in the upper area at the level of the arcade arches. The six fields of the north and south walls framed by the pillars and the cornice are each filled with a large blind arcade . A semicircular archivolt stands on fighters that continue on the pillars. The inside of the front of the archivolt consists of a geometric, radially arranged ornament in the form of the letter "S" alternating with its mirror image. A simple, slightly deeper arched profile is led around the outside. The vertical edges of the blind arcades each form a slender column, accompanied by a narrow piece of wall.
The entire width of the inner field of the blind arcade is filled with a three-tier archivolt window in the upper area, with three narrow, narrow round columns on each side, with simply profiled bases and capitals. Archival arches made of two round bars and a slightly protruding edging profile are stored on projecting transom profiles . An ornament band made of thirteen cylindrical parts, each filled with a cross, is inserted between the round bars.
The Romanesque, slender arched window is once again framed within the archivolts and column surroundings by a simple recessed wall strip.
In the first two bays there is a projecting cornice profile at the height of the window parapet, which runs through the wall surfaces and pillar templates.
Above the cornice over the large blind arcade arches, the smooth wall surface is extended a little further up, undivided, until under the simply profiled cantilevered cornice of the eaves .
The bell tower rises above the almost square floor plan of the narthex , its front wall slightly behind the facade surface. The wall surfaces of the tower above the facade ridge have the shape of a lying rectangle and are framed all around by pilaster strips . The upper end of the walls is formed by a wide, multi-tiered eaves cornice. The spire consists of a wooden structure in the shape of a pyramid with a roof pitch of approx. 60 degrees, towed near the eaves. It is covered with dark gray slate. A round arched sound hatch opens in the wall.
The nave, transept and choir have flat pitched gable roofs with "real" eaves on the north and south sides. There is a height offset between the ship and the transept wall. The roof coverings are made of dark monk and nun tiles .
West facade
The facade of the former priory church of Saint-Martin in Chadenac is one of the most beautiful in Saintonge .
Rough breakdown
The facade from the floor to the gable ridge is, in contrast to the usual scheme in Saintonge, divided into three floors, roughly in the ratio of two quarters + one quarter + one quarter. There is also a deviation in the vertical division into three sections, which only takes place on the ground floor here, in the ratio of a quarter + two quarters + a quarter. The total width of the facade decreases towards the top, graduated from floor to floor.
The horizontal subdivision is carried out by a projecting cornice on corbels above the ground floor, and a cantilever cornice above the first floor.
The vertical subdivision on the ground floor is made by half round columns that reach the height of the capital of the portals. The pillars are lengthened upwards with short and thinner pillars on which large sculptures stand. At the facade edges of the ground floor there are pillar templates, which, similar to the aforementioned columns, are extended by a short and narrow template piece on which there are again large sculptures.
The archivolts main portal forms the center of the first floor of the facade, with seven carved arches and seven columns on each side, and is precisely fitted between the dividing columns. The same applies to the flanking tripartite archivolts - blind portals.
On the first floor there is a blind arcade that extends over the entire width of the facade, consisting of five larger blind arcades, each of which houses two smaller ones with an additional setback.
The second floor is also the upper end, the verge of which follows the roof slope of the ship. In the middle there is only one archivolt dummy window.
Fine structures
With the exception of the first archivolt, the archivolt portal does not know the classic gradations of front sides and inner or lower sides. The cross-section of the individual visible sides of the arches is inclined from the outside to the inside and is rounded like a fillet. Accordingly, there are seven visible sides, in different widths, with sculptures in very different scales. Due to the small gradation of the archivolt arches, the total depth of the portal walls, despite the seven-section design, has remained relatively small.
As is often the case with the archivolt portals in Saintonge, the main theme of her sculpture is the battle between the forces of good and evil.
Except for the two depictions of Christ, all sculptures are arranged tangentially. Much has been badly weathered and also damaged by mechanical impact. There are therefore many problems with the interpretation or iconographic assignment of the representations.
A representation of Christ in the mandorla extends over the 1st and 2nd archivolt in the middle . He wears a crown and holds his hands upright at chest level with his thumbs apart. The four tall people on the 1st archivolt are arranged one above the other, but cannot be identified due to weathering.
It is different with the second archivolt arch, whose six individual pairs of figures embody the “virtues and vices”. The upright “virtues” (the middle is above) - the good ones - are noble figures, equipped with pointed helmets, shields and lances. The “vices” - the bad guys - crouch and squirm at their feet as miserable human figures, with physical deformities and grimacing faces. In one case (to the left of the middle) the “vice” can be seen particularly well. It is a person emaciated to the point of a skeleton with an oversized head and a bloated stomach.
The largest portrayals of people can be found on the face of the 3rd archivolt. There are four martyrs whose objects are supposed to indicate how they were tortured and killed. So we see a long-handled ax and a sword. On closer inspection, you can see circular halos behind the heads, which stand for their holiness.
The scenes on the 4th archivolt remain largely a mystery to us. The people of the Middle Ages must have understood them. In almost all cases men and women wrestle with animal figures from a fantasy world, the incarnation of evil. In the second scene next to the middle, a person defends himself against the attack of a huge bird with a lizard tail and a lizard head, which has bitten into its body and hits it with a stick from above. In the third scene to the right of the center we see a woman with a similar monster, again with a bird's body and a lizard's tail, which has clung to her head and grabs with its huge lizard's mouth and its sharp teeth. Another section shows an animal figure without human involvement, a quadruped with a lizard-like body and snake-like tail, insect-like wings and a large head tapering towards the mouth, the calamity of the fantasy world of the Middle Ages.
The 5th archivolt again offers something familiar from other portals of the Saintonge, the parable of the wise (good) and the foolish (bad) virgins. In the center of the upper body of Christ, here well preserved, with outstretched arms pointing to the two doors of heaven, the one on his left is closed, the one on his right is open. The wise virgins strive for the open door, with their heads held high and with goblet-like vessels pointing upwards in one hand. These are oil lamps that are still filled with oil and lit. They will walk through the gate as good ones. On the closed opposite side, the foolish virgins stand in horror, their heads turned away, bowed and supported with one hand. In the other hand, which is hanging downwards, they hold the same goblet-like vessel (best preserved in the second figure, to the right of the middle), with the opening pointing downwards, demonstrating that it no longer contains any oil because they have wasted it. You, the bad guys, are denied access.
The 6th archivolt contains eight animal figures without people involved, almost all of them mythical creatures from a bird's body with bird claws, lizard tail rolled up like a snake, and with a lizard's head similar to that of a crocodile. Everyone here stands for evil.
The meaning of the nine sculptures of the 7th and outer archivolt remains closed. They are largely weathered or damaged and hardly show any accessories that could be used to identify them. The two women on the lower right are still well preserved. The lower one is holding a book in her left hand. The one above is holding a ribbon with both hands, stretched across the chest like a curve, perhaps a tape. The next person holds their arms high above their head, with their hands united (tied up?). The next one, presumably a woman, is carrying a bag or other object on her left arm. The right is high. The two stones in the middle of the arch bear indistinguishable bas-reliefs, while small feet can be seen on the right one. The representation to the left of the center is strange. Next to the person and independently of him, an over-long arm with a hand is shown. The next person's entire upper body is destroyed. The penultimate person is the only one on this arch who wears a halo behind his head, his right hand raised openly. The left arm is missing. The bottom person is again holding a book in his right arm, his left hand raised open at the top. Presumably, this group of people are symbols of the good.
On both sides of the portal there are seven unstructured round columns of different thicknesses in a row, on multi-tiered bases, and carry seven archivolt capitals and their fighters. But you can still see the elaborate artistic stone carving on the pathetic remains of the weathering . The inner capitals are still quite well preserved. Again they show the "evil" bird figures with lizard heads and tails.
The two outer blind portals again have archivolt arches with the "correct" three-fold gradation of arches, in different cross-sections. Those of the outer and inner archivolt arches are significantly larger than those of the middle ones. The ornamentation is essentially vegetable and geometric in nature and is interrupted by profiles and bands. The ornamentation of the bands surrounding the arches is also vegetal.
The archivolt capitals on the round columns show scenes and figures from the fantasy world of the people of the Middle Ages. In the left mock portal there is a head, the mouth of which is slipped over one of the column shafts from above. The fighter profiles have geometric ribbon ornaments.
The sculptures in the tympana of the false portals are badly weathered and hardly recognizable. In the left tympanum , a lizard-like figure could be depicted, grabbing a person and lifting it up. In the one on the right, two figures (one animal, the other human?) Crouch opposite, apparently ready to pounce on one another.
In the fields below the tympana, the two life-size statues have lost their upper bodies. The lower body of the left stands on an equally incomplete animal body, with a curled up lizard tail.
Quite original scenes are lively depicted above the arches of the two false portals, in which a large dog and a lion, recognizable by their mane, pounce from both sides at a frozen prey (sheep?).
On the pillars separating the portals stand monumental statues that no longer have heads. The person on the left is a stately woman in elegant, foot-length clothing. Your right arm hangs down loosely. Your sleeve is extended from the wrist to below the knees, with a bell-shaped swinging textile structure that is open at the bottom. A female monumental sculpture on the facade of the church of St-Hérie in the district of Matha of the same name also bears such a clothing detail. The right person can be recognized as an angel by their outspread wings. He stands on the body of an undefined animal shape. On the two outer pillars only remains of statues can be found, whose identification should no longer be possible. There is, however, the following attempt to interpret three of the four sculptures: Left outside St. Georg (?) And half left the princess freed by him from the power of the dragon, further half right the Archangel Michael with the "monster".
A double cornice separates the ground floor from the first floor and is supported by corbels . The two cornice parts are rectangular in cross-section, the upper one without structure, the vertical visible side of the lower one is adorned with plant ornaments. The cornice is supported by L-shaped corbels, the inner corner of which is rounded, profiled and decorated with geometric structures. The spaces between the corbels are filled with individual mostly round bas-reliefs, as rosettes and wickerwork. Portrait heads are also attached in irregular succession between the corbels, sometimes in pairs.
On the double cornice are the pillars of the blind arches, six for the five larger arches and an additional fifteen for the ten smaller set back arches. The decoration of the arcature remains very simple. The arches are followed by simple profiles, the upper ones are framed by a narrow band of star-shaped ornaments. The capitals and thick spars are not ornamented. The first floor is separated from the second by a barely bulky strip with a simple geometric structure.
The second floor is barely a meter high on its sides and rises to the ridge with an incline of approx. 20 degrees. An archivolt dummy window is set under the ridge between the protruding dividing band and the slightly protruding gable cover plate. Two slender round columns with fighters as on the storey below carry an arch made of three strong round bars, which are framed on the outside by a thin, simply ornamented profile band. A considerably smaller blind window niche with a round arch is inserted in the archivolts field.
Chadenac, dog + lion provide prey
Chadenac, portal capital, monsters on lions with cat heads
Chadenac, portal capital, birds with lizard tails and heads
Chadenac, cantilevered cornice, detail
Web links
- https://sites.google.com/site/modillonsetpeinturesromanes/Saintonge/chadenac-eglise-saint-martin ( Memento from December 17, 2012 in the web archive archive.today ) Chadenac, Saint-Martin - photos + brief information (French)
literature
- Thorsten Droste : Poitou. Western France between Poitiers and Angoulême - the Atlantic coast from the Loire to the Gironde. DuMont, Cologne 1999, ISBN 3-7701-4456-2 , pp. 222-223.
Coordinates: 45 ° 32 ′ 31 ″ N , 0 ° 26 ′ 35 ″ W.