Abbey Church of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe

Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe, France

The Romanesque Abbey church was constructed in the mid-11th century and contains many beautiful 11th- and 12th-century murals which are still in a remarkable state of preservation. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983.

The cruciform church carries a square tower over its crossing. The transept was built first, then the choir with its ambulatory with five radial chapels in the polygonal apse. In the next building campaign, three bays of the nave were added, the bell tower and its porch, and finally the last six bays of the nave. The bell tower is finished by a fine stone spire more than 80 meters high, added in the 14th century (and restored in the 19th century).

The barrel vaulted nave is supported on magnificently-scaled column with foliate capitals.

References:

Wikipedia

Address

Place de la Libération 54, Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe, France

See all sites in Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe

Details

Founded: c. 1050
Category: Religious sites in France
Historical period: Birth of Capetian dynasty (France)

More Information

en.wikipedia.org
whc.unesco.org

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Jota (3 years ago)
Stunning! Worth stoping by and enjoy it. It has a little gift shop/information point on the side where you can get yourself a pair of headphones to enjoy a guided tour discovering all the secrets of the abbey.

Alisa Boltneva (3 years ago)
Beautiful and offers different tours which are very suitable even for little kids like ours, 6 and 8 y.o.

kar yuet Kwan (3 years ago)
Beautiful fresco mural art in this monastery

Alan Pembshaw (4 years ago)
One of the most beautiful interiors of the many abbeys in France. Highlighted not only by the frescoes and murals it is most famous for, but also the painted columns, statuary and stained glass windows. An absolute must to visit and certainly lives up to its UNESCO listing status.

Ken Mann (4 years ago)
A 'must see' even if you're not religious. The frescoes and history make it worthy of it's UNESCO listing.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Christian Lauw

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