|
When you first approach the 12th century collegiate
church of Saint
Martin from
the narrow main street of the town dedicated to his
memory, you could be forgiven for thinking what you see
is a rather ornate castle rather than a church.
This is the result of the addition (15th century) of
fortifications during the Hundred Years War as a means
of protecting the original building.
Although, this did not stop
damage being inflicted during the wars of religion,
which can be witnessed after walking up the steps
under the impressively ornate porch ...
...with many of the carvings
missing heads.
Here you can also see
renovation work that has been carried out on the
ornate carvings.
Through this entrance you
enter the impressive nave of the church 'side-on'.
The nave's vaulted ceiling is set high above you and
is more reminiscent of a cathedrsl than a church.
There is an
impressive arch leading into the choir of the church
that contains the main altar and side altars.
The tall fluted pillars are
adorned with interesting carvings at varying
heights.
The north transept chapel is
dedicated to St Martin and there is a large painting
of him as a Roman soldier above the arch.
A marble slab on the floor records St
Martin died here 8 November 397.
There is a stained glass
window above depicting St
Martin's body being taken from the church to a
boat to be transported upriver to Tours.
Where's Joan ?...she's
portrayed in fine style here...
The west portal which
externally looks like the main entrance is reached
up a narrow street by the side of the church.
Look out for the heads of Robespierre, Danton and Marat
that a worker has made to replace the plumes on one of
the capitals of the porch. This was apparently done
during the renovation of the church in the middle of
the nineteenth century.
If you walk around the church you will see the different
styles of architecture dating from different build
periods.
Back to top.
"Author: Jim
Craig"
Back to
Churches
|
