Page 405 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - France

Montmorillon, is the Portes frescoes in Europe. These
d’Enfer, a dramatically shaped wall paintings were among
rock perched high above the the very first in France to be
rapids of the Gartempe. classified as a monument
historique in 1836.

13 " ST-SAVIN WALL
St-Savin PAINTINGS
! D4 ⌂ Vienne @ n 20 pl The great frescoes of
de la Libération; www. St-Savin represent Old
sudviennepoitou.com Testament history from
the Creation to the Ten
The glory of St-Savin is its 11th- Commandments. The
century abbey church with its sequence starts to the
slender Gothic spire and huge left of the entrance
nave. The abbey had enormous with the Creation of the
influence until the Hundred stars and of Eve. It con-
Years’ War, when it was burned tinues with scenes from
down. It was later pillaged sev- Noah’s Ark to the Tower
Angles is famous for its eral times during the Wars of of Babel, the story of
tradition of fine needlework, Religion. Despite restor ation Joseph and the parting
the jours d’Angles, which is work by monks in the 17th of the Red Sea. It is
determinedly maintained century and again in the believed that all the
by the local women today. 19th century, the church frescoes were created
Located just outside the appears quite untouched. by the same group of
village is the Roc-aux-Sorciers, Its interior contains the artists, due to the
a sculpted rock shelter that most magnificent series of similarity in style.
dates back 15,000 years and is 12th-century Romanesque
the site of some of the world’s
most important Paleolithic
cave art.

12
Montmorillon
! D4 ⌂ Vienne @ n 2 pl du
Maréchal Leclerc, www.
sudviennepoitou.com
Montmorillon, built on the
River Gartempe, has its
origins in the 11th century.
Like most towns in the region,
it had a difficult time during
the Hundred Years’ War and
the Wars of Religion. Some
buildings survived, such as
Église Notre-Dame, which has
beautiful frescoes in its 12th-
century crypt (contact the
tourist office for the key). These
include scenes from the life of
St Catherine of Alexandria.
A short walk from the Pont
de Chez Ragon, just south of

The interior of St-Savin
abbey, known for its
extraordinary frescoes

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