St-Pierre (Saint-Pierre-les-Églises)

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Saint-Pierre church and cemetery
inner space

The Catholic Church Saint-Pierre in Saint-Pierre-les-Églises, a district of Chauvigny in the Vienne department in the French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine , is essentially a pre-Romanesque church building that probably goes back to a Merovingian predecessor church. In the 19th century, wall paintings were discovered in the church that are dated to the Carolingian era and are among the oldest in Europe. In 1952, the church was added to the list of architectural monuments in France as Monument historique .

history

Apse and Roman milestone

Saint-Pierre-les-Églises lies at the point of a ford over the Vienne , over which the former Roman road from Poitiers to Bourges led. A Roman milestone placed on the apse of the church recalls the course of the street. In Roman times there was a settlement here, which moved to the upper town of Chauvigny in the course of the Middle Ages. A text from the 12th century shows that the church of Saint-Pierre-les-Églises was built from the remains of a temple dedicated to the patron gods of navigation on the Vienne. The Merovingian sarcophagi found in the vicinity of the church suggest that there was already a Christian church in the middle of this cemetery.

architecture

The single nave nave is covered with a wooden ceiling. A semicircular apse opens in the east, which was vaulted in the 11th or beginning of the 12th century with a dome in the Romanesque style . The wall paintings of the Carolingian church were damaged during this construction work.

Murals

Maria Jacobi
king

The wall paintings in the apse, which were created between 780 and 980, have faded considerably and only individual scenes can be seen. The depiction of the crucifixion of Christ is framed by two people. The name "MARIA MAGDALENA" can be read next to the female figure on the right. Under the cross are Longinus, also named after him, with the lance and the sponge- bearer Stephaton . In the scene of the birth of Christ, the main focus is on details of the newborn's bath, such as water jugs and a white dress. Further scenes are dedicated to the adoration of the Magi and the Archangel Michael , who fights against the seven-headed dragon of the Apocalypse . The female figure on the left apse wall next to the crucifixion scene is interpreted as Maria Jacobi , the mother of the apostle James the Younger , who presents the empty shroud as a sign of Christ's resurrection. The crowned figure below the crucifixion scene is believed to represent one of the Magi before Herod .

  • Crucifixion of Christ

  • Birth of Christ

  • Adoration of the Magi

  • Archangel Michael fights the dragon

literature

Web links

Commons : Saint-Pierre (Saint-Pierre-les-Églises)  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Église de Saint-Pierre-les-Églises in the Base Mérimée of the French Ministry of Culture (French)
  2. ↑ Saint-Pierre-les-Églises Mairie de Chauvigny

Coordinates: 46 ° 33 '16 "  N , 0 ° 38' 5.8"  E