Romanesque church built in the 14th and 15th centuries, listed as a Monument Historique. Its nickname, "la mignonne" ("the cute one"), given by the archbishops, is proof of this. In the choir, trompe-l'œil wall paintings have been discovered thanks to soundings.
It is dedicated to Saint-Laurent, patron saint of the parish (hence the initials S.L. on the town's coat of arms).
Although not common in the Middle Ages, the building is oriented North-South rather than East-West. The small size of the site, bounded by ramparts, may explain this orientation.
Originally, the church had a strict traditional Latin cross plan with two chapels forming a transept; the other four side chapels were founded later. This plan bears witness to the relationship with Chalais Romanesque art in general and with the abbey of Boscodon in particular. North facade:
The main facade overlooking the Grande Charrière opens with a round-headed doorway, flanked on each side by 3 voussoirs resting on 3 successively retreating colonettes in living stone, crowned by capitals with hooked foliage, decorated with finely sculpted motifs: human figures, oak twigs adorned on the right with an amusing little snail... Above the colonettes, two semi-circular scrolls form and support the archway of the door. The base of the extrados is decorated with an escutcheon bearing three fleurs-de-lis on the left and a dauphin on the right, a reference to the kingdom of France and the Dauphin.
Above the extrados is the edge of a slightly broken barrel vault that rests on either side of two engaged columns, sadly mutilated at the top and which once supported the "Réal". Originally, until the early 20th century, the whole building was sheltered, in the Lombard style, by a magnificent porch called the Réal (porta régalis), as in Embrun Cathedral.
Unfortunately, this was demolished to make way for the Grand Route, which until 1990 ran through the heart of the village [....]
A high Gothic-style 15th-century window, divided by a central mullion, sits atop a flanking rose window featuring fleur-de-lys, a dolphin, a moon and a sun. This flamboyant Gothic bay replaced a smaller Romanesque bay.
Serrated Lombardy bands complete the decoration of the façade at the top, flush with the roof, which is also pierced on either side of the entrance by two round-headed windows and reinforced by two high pillars.
A large, massive, elaborately carved 16th-century double door in stone pine gives access to the church. Above the thick stone lintel, the half-moon tympanum is adorned with a faux classical fresco, painted at the end of the 19th century by Isabelle ROMAN, of the Château de Picomtal. This unprotected work, badly damaged by the effects of traffic, has just been skilfully restored by Mr Benoît ROMAN D'AMAT, a former student at the Beaux Arts and the author's great-grandson.
Interior:
The church, which looks rather sombre, opens onto a single high nave with a slightly broken barrel vault, extended by a lower apse, square in plan and smaller in size, with a ribbed vault like the two arms of the transept.
The whole church is 22m deep and 8m wide, and 14m wide in the axis of the transept.
In the past, the quadragonal choir with its flat chevet was largely lit by three fine lancet-shaped Romanesque windows. The largest of these, at the back, was blacked out at the end of the 19th century to allow the large painting to be installed. The walls of the choir are covered in old wood panelling, which has been soberly worked to a height of around 2 metres. The wooden gallery was built at the end of the 18th century. Originally, it was around 1 m wider, but in the 19th century it was shortened to ensure the solidity of the whole. The centre of the apse is occupied by an imposing 18th-century polychrome Baroque altar, a faithful plaster replica of the high altar in Embrun cathedral. It was mutilated during the recent post-conciliar period. In the chancel on the right, the sacristy doorway is beautifully framed in local marble in the shape of a brace, as are the curious monstrous figures adorning the base of the ogival cross-beams. The keystone is decorated with the monogram J.H.S.
Like that of the apse, and although most certainly made of cargneol, the vault of the nave was covered in 1880 with a cladding that rather skilfully mimics this stonework by depicting decorations in fake marble.
The vault, divided into three bays by two double arches resting on cargneol pilasters, rests on simple brackets linked by a projecting cornice that runs from one end of the building to the other on each side. Above the entrance, there is an imposing and splendid larch tribune, which occupies, at half-height, the entire back of the nave, and returns on each of the two sides. This structure needs to be consolidated and restored.
Near the entrance is a circular pink marble font said to date back to the 11th century. The baptismal font in the first chapel on the left is of more recent date.
The later side chapels are of no particular interest, apart from the second (after the baptismal font), which is now walled in (behind the confessional) and has direct access from the outside (east facade) and via the bell tower. This is the former burial chapel of the lords of Picomtal, now disused.
The bell tower
The quadragonal bell tower, topped by a cargneol spire and flanked by four pyramidions, is very common in the Embrunais region and the Alps. It dates back to 1829/1839, when the original bell tower was raised to a height of 23 m.
This original bell tower was therefore lower and more modest in design, with a simple slate roof and two geminated bays topped by a semi-circular arch. Traces of these bays are still visible
Like the main façade, this one was completely restored in 1992. Since the Revolution, it had housed the former abbey bell of Boscodon, which was solemnly restored on 11 November 1992 and replaced by a new, identical bell christened on 12 April 1993.
Although not common in the Middle Ages, the building is oriented North-South rather than East-West. The small size of the site, bounded by ramparts, may explain this orientation.
Originally, the church had a strict traditional Latin cross plan with two chapels forming a transept; the other four side chapels were founded later. This plan bears witness to the relationship with Chalais Romanesque art in general and with the abbey of Boscodon in particular. North facade:
The main facade overlooking the Grande Charrière opens with a round-headed doorway, flanked on each side by 3 voussoirs resting on 3 successively retreating colonettes in living stone, crowned by capitals with hooked foliage, decorated with finely sculpted motifs: human figures, oak twigs adorned on the right with an amusing little snail... Above the colonettes, two semi-circular scrolls form and support the archway of the door. The base of the extrados is decorated with an escutcheon bearing three fleurs-de-lis on the left and a dauphin on the right, a reference to the kingdom of France and the Dauphin.
Above the extrados is the edge of a slightly broken barrel vault that rests on either side of two engaged columns, sadly mutilated at the top and which once supported the "Réal". Originally, until the early 20th century, the whole building was sheltered, in the Lombard style, by a magnificent porch called the Réal (porta régalis), as in Embrun Cathedral.
Unfortunately, this was demolished to make way for the Grand Route, which until 1990 ran through the heart of the village [....]
A high Gothic-style 15th-century window, divided by a central mullion, sits atop a flanking rose window featuring fleur-de-lys, a dolphin, a moon and a sun. This flamboyant Gothic bay replaced a smaller Romanesque bay.
Serrated Lombardy bands complete the decoration of the façade at the top, flush with the roof, which is also pierced on either side of the entrance by two round-headed windows and reinforced by two high pillars.
A large, massive, elaborately carved 16th-century double door in stone pine gives access to the church. Above the thick stone lintel, the half-moon tympanum is adorned with a faux classical fresco, painted at the end of the 19th century by Isabelle ROMAN, of the Château de Picomtal. This unprotected work, badly damaged by the effects of traffic, has just been skilfully restored by Mr Benoît ROMAN D'AMAT, a former student at the Beaux Arts and the author's great-grandson.
Interior:
The church, which looks rather sombre, opens onto a single high nave with a slightly broken barrel vault, extended by a lower apse, square in plan and smaller in size, with a ribbed vault like the two arms of the transept.
The whole church is 22m deep and 8m wide, and 14m wide in the axis of the transept.
In the past, the quadragonal choir with its flat chevet was largely lit by three fine lancet-shaped Romanesque windows. The largest of these, at the back, was blacked out at the end of the 19th century to allow the large painting to be installed. The walls of the choir are covered in old wood panelling, which has been soberly worked to a height of around 2 metres. The wooden gallery was built at the end of the 18th century. Originally, it was around 1 m wider, but in the 19th century it was shortened to ensure the solidity of the whole. The centre of the apse is occupied by an imposing 18th-century polychrome Baroque altar, a faithful plaster replica of the high altar in Embrun cathedral. It was mutilated during the recent post-conciliar period. In the chancel on the right, the sacristy doorway is beautifully framed in local marble in the shape of a brace, as are the curious monstrous figures adorning the base of the ogival cross-beams. The keystone is decorated with the monogram J.H.S.
Like that of the apse, and although most certainly made of cargneol, the vault of the nave was covered in 1880 with a cladding that rather skilfully mimics this stonework by depicting decorations in fake marble.
The vault, divided into three bays by two double arches resting on cargneol pilasters, rests on simple brackets linked by a projecting cornice that runs from one end of the building to the other on each side. Above the entrance, there is an imposing and splendid larch tribune, which occupies, at half-height, the entire back of the nave, and returns on each of the two sides. This structure needs to be consolidated and restored.
Near the entrance is a circular pink marble font said to date back to the 11th century. The baptismal font in the first chapel on the left is of more recent date.
The later side chapels are of no particular interest, apart from the second (after the baptismal font), which is now walled in (behind the confessional) and has direct access from the outside (east facade) and via the bell tower. This is the former burial chapel of the lords of Picomtal, now disused.
The bell tower
The quadragonal bell tower, topped by a cargneol spire and flanked by four pyramidions, is very common in the Embrunais region and the Alps. It dates back to 1829/1839, when the original bell tower was raised to a height of 23 m.
This original bell tower was therefore lower and more modest in design, with a simple slate roof and two geminated bays topped by a semi-circular arch. Traces of these bays are still visible
Like the main façade, this one was completely restored in 1992. Since the Revolution, it had housed the former abbey bell of Boscodon, which was solemnly restored on 11 November 1992 and replaced by a new, identical bell christened on 12 April 1993.
