Chapelle Saint-Gonéry et cimetière
MonumentHidden Treasure
Chapelle Saint-Gonéry et cimetière, located in Plougrescant (Département 22), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Plougrescant, Département 22, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.8415, -3.2284
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00089481
In the heart of Brittany's Trégor region, the chapel of Saint-Gonéry boasts a boldly leaning lead spire and a fully painted panelled vault, a veritable illuminated 15th-century Bible in the open air.
History
Nestling in the market town of Plougrescant, on the Pink Granite Coast of the Côtes-d'Armor, the chapel of Saint-Gonéry is one of the most unique nuggets of Breton religious heritage. Far from the noisy cathedrals, it imposes silence by the density of what it conceals: centuries of popular faith condensed into a building of modest dimensions, but with an interior richness that is absolutely striking. What immediately sets Saint-Gonéry apart from other rural chapels is its lead spire, dated 1612, which leans with an almost insolent casualness towards the grey Armorican sky. This torsion, the result of settling foundations and lead that has deformed under its own weight over the centuries, gives it a unique silhouette that is instantly recognisable, comparable in strangeness to the famous campanile in Pisa. Inside, the revelation is complete. The panelled vault of the nave features a cycle of paintings from the late fifteenth or early sixteenth century with a remarkably coherent narrative: the upper panels on each side illustrate the great scenes of the Old Testament, from Creation to Original Sin, while the lower panels tell the story of the life of Christ, from the Nativity to the Passion. These representations form a veritable pictorial catechism, designed to instruct the faithful of a period that was still largely illiterate. Attentive visitors will also notice the finely sculpted runners and crossbeams in the transept arms, testifying to the skills of medieval Breton carpenters, as well as two fragments of 15th or 16th-century stained glass depicting the Virgin Mary and St John, precious survivors of a glass ensemble that must once have bathed the building in coloured light. The cemetery surrounding the chapel, which is also listed, adds to the timeless atmosphere of the place, with its granite crosses weathered by the Atlantic sea spray. To visit Saint-Gonéry is to agree to slow down. It means letting your eyes wander over each painted scene, guessing at the intentions of an anonymous artist from Trégor who, over five hundred years ago, was telling the story of the world with the colours of his time.
Architecture
Saint-Gonéry chapel has a modest cruciform floor plan, typical of Breton rural chapels of the late Middle Ages: a single nave extended by a choir with a flat or slightly polygonal chevet, flanked by a transept with crossing arms. The whole structure is built from local granite, a material that is omnipresent in the Trégor landscape, whose bluish-grey hue blends naturally with the sky and the surrounding Atlantic vegetation. Externally, the silhouette of the chapel is dominated by its lead spire dating from 1612, whose pronounced inclination - several degrees from the vertical - is the most striking and most photographed architectural feature. Inside, the nave reveals its masterpiece: a panelled barrel vault entirely covered in paintings from the late 15th or early 16th century. Organised in two superimposed registers on each side, this painted vault constitutes a complete iconographic programme, with scenes from the Old Testament (Creation, Adam and Eve) in the upper panels and scenes from the New Testament (Nativity, Passion of Christ) in the lower panels. The palette, with its warm ochres and deep blues, bears witness to a solid pictorial mastery despite the wear and tear of the centuries. In the transept, the runners and crossbeams have preserved high-quality sculptures depicting figures, foliage and heraldic motifs typical of late-Gothic Breton art. Two fragments of 15th or 16th century stained glass depicting the Virgin Mary and Saint John complete this exceptional medieval decorative ensemble.
Related Figures
Saint Gonéry — moine évangélisateur celtique (VIe-VIIe s.), fondateur légendaire du lieu de culteLes artistes peintres anonymes du Trégor (fin XVe-début XVIe s.) — auteurs du cycle de peintures de la voûteLes charpentiers-sculpteurs bretons du XVIe siècle — créateurs des sablières et entraits sculptés du transeptLes maîtres plombiers de 1612 — artisans de la célèbre flèche en plombProsper Mérimée — inspecteur général des Monuments historiques, dont l'action nationale a conduit à des classements comme celui de 1911
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Chapelle Saint-Gonéry et cimetière located?
Chapelle Saint-Gonéry et cimetière is located in Plougrescant, Département 22 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Chapelle Saint-Gonéry et cimetière built?
Chapelle Saint-Gonéry et cimetière dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Chapelle Saint-Gonéry et cimetière open to visitors?
Chapelle Saint-Gonéry et cimetière is currently closed to visitors.
