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.

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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)

Interesting Sites Nearby


Fontgombault Abbey (15,1 km)
Château de La Celle-Guenand (42,2 km)

User Reviews

Paul Hemmett (7 months ago)
Lovely place to visit if you are in the area
Robert Bridgewater (8 months ago)
Beautiful, incredible experience. Come visit and be part of history.....hundreds of years of history.....
Emmanuel CHAUMEAU (9 months ago)
What a surprise. Such beautiful place and I never heard of it before. To be seen
Stephen Brown (13 months ago)
Amazing painting of the pillars and biblical scenes in the ceiling of this ancient and beautiful Abbey church.
Vincent van Heesewijk (2 years ago)
Just stunning. Amazing that such a precious and delicate artwork has survived time. A great insight into how churches looked a couple of centuries ago. Bright colours. Quite different compared to today.
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