The association "La Sauvegarde de l'église Saint-Laurent-des-Prés" invites you to discover this building, whose construction began over a thousand years ago, in 8 stages.
At each stage of the tour, you'll find a poster (cartel) and a QR Code to flash, giving you written information and a video commentary.
The Romanesque church of Saint-Laurent-des-Prés was completed around 1080. It was built in the 9th or 10th century, then given to the Benedictines of Saint-Chef in 1109, on condition that they build a priory. The church was then remodeled and enlarged in Gothic style from the 12th to the 15th century. Only the porch and second floor of the bell tower remain.
On either side of the porch are limestone columns (cf. 1 below). They probably come from a nearby Roman villa. A stoup built into the wall dates from the same period.
Originally, the parvis was at the same level as the church floor. Flooding of the Rival, the torrent that flows through the town in the open air, deposited huge quantities of material, raising the parvis. It is now necessary to descend several steps to enter the church.
The primitive bell tower had a defensive function, as evidenced by the loopholes on the second floor. One is facing us, while another is only visible from inside the bell tower, on the south wall. The one on the north wall disappeared when the current access to the bell tower from the Capuchin chapel to the left of the porch was cut through (cf. 2 below).
On the two levels above the porch, these are not blocked openings, but architectural motifs known as Lombardy bands, typical of medieval construction (cf. 3 above).
On the left, the north facade is adorned with a head carved in stone at the level of the eaves (cf. 4 above).
5. Carved head on north face
On the top floor of the bell tower, two "geniuses" are carved into the corners facing the forecourt. This unusual feature led to the bell tower being listed as a Monument Historique in 1930, while the rest of the church was listed in 1965. The meaning of this allegory can be read as representing the chosen and the damned. It was inspired by the Wheel of Fortune, which was popular in the Middle Ages.
The oldest bells, still in place, can be seen in the thickness of the walls. One is dated 1756, as is the clock, the other is an epigraph.
On the left, the north facade is adorned with a head carved in stone at the level of the lampshades (cf. 5 above).
Built at the end of the 12th century, the exterior entrance to the Capuchin chapel originally featured an ogival vault, traces of which can be seen on the façade
(cf. 4 above).
The church was enlarged during the 1866 restoration (cf. 8 below). The north wall, to the left of the main façade, was aligned with an existing chapel. The trace of an arch can be seen in the old part of the wall (cf. 8 below).
The opening was redesigned in 1866, with a stained-glass window placed directly on the door lintel (cf. 6 below).
All stained glass windows date from the 19th century.
Let's return to the forecourt. To your right, the bell tower is flanked by the Notre-Dame-de-Pitié chapel, built in the late 12th century (cf. 9 below).
Note the presence of a cross on a column in the recess, which was dismantled at the end of the 20th century. We'll find it deposited in a chapel when we visit the interior of the church. All that remains is the pedestal on which it stood (cf. 10 below).
The different orientations of the buttresses show that the chapels were built in 4 successive phases, from the end of the 12th to the end of the 15th century.
To visit the interior of the church, head towards the entrance to the parish house.
The church entrance is on the left (green arrow).
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