Page 352 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - France

12
Orcival
! E5 ⌂ Puy de Dôme n Le
Bourg; www.tourisme-
sancy-artense.com
Crowded in summer, Orcival
is nevertheless well worth
EXPERIENCE The Massif Central which many would claim is
visiting for its Romanesque
church, the Basilique d’Orcival,
the best in the region. It was
completed at the beginning
of the 12th century, and has
changed little through the
ages. It is typically Auvergne
Roman esque in style; the
apse is multi-tiered, and the
side walls are supported by
powerful buttresses and
strong arches. sign of grati tude by prisoners,
Inside the grand Basilique who believed they had been
d’Orcival, the ornate silver miraculously freed after Did You Know?
and vermilion Virgin and Child praying to the Virgin of Orcival.
(in the forward-facing pos- The International
ition known as “in majesty”) Short Film Festival in
is enigmatic, with an unusual, 13 Clermont-Ferrand is
rigid, square chair. With an the biggest of its kind
interior lit by 14 windows and Clermont-Ferrand in the world.
a spacious crypt, the propor- ! E5 ⌂ Puy de Dôme k £ @
tions of the building itself are n Pl de la Victoire; www.
the most graceful aspect. clermont-fd.com
One of the walls of the tant Romanesque churches in
church is hung with balls and Clermont-Ferrand began as the region. The stone interior
chains, which were left as a two distinct cities, united only is beautifully proportioned,
in 1630. Famous as the home with a magnificent raised
of the Michelin tyre company choir and carved capitals.
and dramatically framed by Clermont’s ancient origins
volcanic mountains, the town as a Celtic and then Roman
has an appealing energy settlement are well illustrated
about it, lent partly by its at the Musée Bargoin with its
thriving student population remarkable collections of
and large number of arts and locally found artifacts (closed
music festivals; it is regularly Monday and Sunday morning).
ranked among France’s best
places to live in terms of
quality of life. 14
Rising up at the heart of
the medieval old town is one St-Nectaire
of the country’s most striking ! E5 ⌂ Puy de Dôme
cathedrals, the graceful 13th- @ n Les Grands Thermes;
century Cathédrale Notre- www.sancy.com
Dame-de-l’Assomption. The
dark rock provides a foil for The Auvergne is noted for
the jewel-like 12th- to 15th- Romanesque churches. The
century stained-glass Église St-Nectaire in the upper
windows, believed to be from
the same workshop as Ste-
Chapelle’s in Paris (p92).
Soaring arches inside Northeast of the cathedral Monts Dômes, an area of
the 12th-century is Basilique Notre-Dame-du- extinct volcanoes, topped by
Basilique d'Orcival Port, one of the most impor- a telecommucations tower
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