Ancienne abbaye de Montmajour
AbbeyHidden Treasure
Ancienne abbaye de Montmajour, located in Arles (Bouches-du-Rhône), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- Abbey
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Arles, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 43.7056, 4.6641
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00081117
A Romanesque jewel standing on a rock in the middle of the Camargue, Montmajour boasts a thousand years of Benedictine history, with its pre-Romanesque crypt, sculpted cloister and square tower overlooking the ponds.
History
Standing on a rocky spur that once emerged from the marshes of the Camargue like an island of stone, Montmajour Abbey is one of the best-preserved monastic complexes in the southern Mediterranean. Only a few kilometres from Arles, it rises out of a landscape of garrigue and ponds that Van Gogh immortalised from the heights of the tower: the Dutch painter, fascinated, made it one of his most recurrent motifs during his stay in Arles. What makes Montmajour truly unique is the visible superimposition of its ages: the 11th-century crypt carved into the rock itself, the columns of the Romanesque cloister whose capitals rival each other in sculptural invention, and the 18th-century conventual buildings, august and unfinished, bearing witness to a reconstruction project never completed. Each stone tells the story of a different ambition, a different century, a different faith. The visit naturally begins with the church of Notre-Dame, whose Romanesque nave immediately imposes its luminous austerity. You then descend into the ring-shaped crypt that runs around the apse - a rare piece of architecture in France - before reaching the cloister, a veritable concentration of Provençal Romanesque art. The chapel of Saint-Pierre, even older, nestles against the rock like a primitive oratory that has been forgotten for centuries. The panorama from the 26-metre-high Abbé Tower is one of the most breathtaking in the region: the Alpilles on the horizon, the Camargue plain criss-crossed by canals, and the rooftops of Arles in the distance. Photographers have found the golden light at sunset to be a familiar sight to painters in the region.
Architecture
The architectural ensemble of Montmajour is divided into several perfectly legible chronological strata. The abbey church of Notre-Dame, built mainly between the 11th and 12th centuries, has a basilica plan with three naves, the structural strength of which rests on large cruciform pillars characteristic of Provençal Romanesque architecture. The sober west facade, punctuated by skylights, prefigures Cistercian austerity. Beneath the apse is a ring-shaped crypt - rare in southern France - carved partly into the limestone rock: a circular ambulatory surrounds a central chapel, bathed in subdued light that heightens the spiritual atmosphere of the place. The cloister, built in the 12th century, is the most attractive feature of the complex. Its four galleries feature semi-circular arches resting on twin columns with richly sculpted capitals: interlacing plants, human figures, hybrid creatures and biblical scenes follow one another in an iconographic vocabulary typical of early Southern Romanesque art. The Abbot's Tower, built in the 14th century for defensive purposes as well as prestige, dominates the ensemble from its 26-metre height; its machicolations and battlements are a reminder of the troubled context of the Hundred Years' War. In contrast to these medieval volumes, the classical eighteenth-century wing reflects the neo-Palladian taste that prevailed under Louis XV: large windows with entablatures, a regular cornice and a U-shaped plan designed to frame a courtyard of honour that was never completed. The dominant material throughout is blonde Provençal limestone, which takes on shades of ochre and gold depending on the time of day.
Related Figures
Teucinde d'Arles — comtesse fondatrice, donatrice du rocher aux bénédictins vers 948Pons de l'Aumône — abbé du XIe siècle sous lequel débuta la grande campagne de construction romaneCardinal Louis-Constantin de Rohan-Soubise — abbé commendataire du XVIIIe siècle, commanditaire du projet de reconstruction classique inachevéHenry Révoil — architecte des Monuments historiques, responsable des campagnes de restauration au XIXe siècleVincent van Gogh — peintre, représenta à de nombreuses reprises l'abbaye et son environnement depuis les collines avoisinantes lors de son séjour à Arles (1888-1889)Prosper Mérimée — inspecteur général des Monuments historiques, qui contribua au classement fondateur de 1840
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Ancienne abbaye de Montmajour located?
Ancienne abbaye de Montmajour is located in Arles, Bouches-du-Rhône department, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, France.
When was Ancienne abbaye de Montmajour built?
Ancienne abbaye de Montmajour dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Ancienne abbaye de Montmajour open to visitors?
Ancienne abbaye de Montmajour is currently closed to visitors.