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At the end of the 10th century and the beginning of the 11th century, Romanesque Art flourished in Auvergne like nowhere else.
With over 250 buildings, Auvergne's heritage is among the most developed in Europe. It features a quest of simplicity and purity. Its strength and homogeneity comes in part from the speed with which the builders erected these masterpieces of clear sobriety - such miracles of sacred architecture.
The major Romanesque Churches of the Puy-de-Dôme
Notre-Dame-du-Port - Clermont-Ferrand
It was built in the heart of the city on the site of an old church founded in the 6th century. Famous for its sculptures, notably its many story-telling capitals and the lintel of the south doorway, this church is on UNESCO's World Heritage List.
Abbatiale Saint-Austremoine - Issoire
The restoration of the frescoes undertaken in 1858 brought out the polychromatic motifs of the Middle Ages. The magnificent Saint-Austremoine abbey church of Issoire, is the largest of lower Auvergne. This old Benedictine Abbey Church stands in the heart of the town. It is one of the most colourful with an exterior of delicate friezes made from Montpeyroux arkoses stone, dark grey andesite and white marble. At sunrise, the church is bathed in an astonishing light warmed by the stone. The inside is adorned by an audacious painting.
Basilique Notre-Dame-des-Fers - Orcival
At the heart of a gorgeous village, a lovely example of the power of faith and the respect for the rules of Romanesque art. It holds the only Romanesque Madonna in the region dressed in gold. Every year, at noon on 15 August, a sunbeam lights up her face. The Notre-Dame basilica is nestled into the side of the mountain. It was built very quickly so that the crowds of pilgrims could pay homage to the famous Black Virgin, nicknamed "Dame des Fers" (Lady of Chains) because of her legendry kindness to convicts.
Eglise de Saint-Nectaire
Built on Mont Cornadore, it dominates the village. Inside is a circle of six capitals telling the story of the life of Saint Nectaire and others. There is also a statuette of the Virgin Mary with a reliquary. Amongst the five major Romanesque churches in Puy-de-Dome, the one in Saint-Nectaire is certainly the oldest.
Eglise de Saint-Saturnin
Located in one of the "Most Beautiful Villages of France", this church combines beauty and sobriety. The smallest, and certainly the youngest of these five churches was built without a narthex (western portico), nor a radiant chapel. Its magnificently preserved octagonal steeple served as a beacon to pilgrims following the Santiago de Compostelle Pilgrims Trail. The octagonal bell tower has remained intact since it was built. Inside, don't miss several gilded wooden statues and the wall painting representing the Archangel Gabriel and the Resurrection of Lazarus.
Abbatiale Saint-Pierre - Mozac
Another marvel of Romanesque Art in the Puy-de-Dôme is the splendid 12th century cornice that had disappeared in earthquakes and reconstructions, but luckily uncovered in the Saint-Pierre de Mozac abbey near Riom. Powerful Atlantes statues, scenes of the Resurrection or the Apocalypse, drapes of smooth stone and expressive faces reveal the creative genius of the Middle Ages.
