Eglise Prieurale Romane de Chamalières-sur-Loire

Take your guided tour thanks to the texts displayed in this superb priory church. Dedicated to Saint-Gilles, this priory church is a fine illustration of Auvergne Romanesque art, characterized by its grace and sobriety, and marked by some Arab influences. The former Benedictine monastery, founded around 943, and a famous place of pilgrimage (thanks to the relics of Saint Gilles and Saint-Clou de Charlemagne), forms a harmonious architectural ensemble, located on the banks of the Loire. To see: the remains of the 4th century cloister, the primitive polychrome door, a magnificent Romanesque stoup (XNUMXth century), the fragments of the tomb of the bishop Saint-Etienne de Chalencon (XNUMXth century), the fresco of the Virgin with the 'Child Jesus and the fresco of a Doctor Jesus (XNUMXth century), a monk from the back clinging to the barrel (transept), thirty échéas (acoustic vases) in the vault of the choir, an apse wider than the nave and the aisles united with its XNUMX radiating chapels.
The guided tour is also available on the municipality's website, Heritage section, sub-section The Roman priory.