Croix dite des Douze Apôtres
MonumentHidden Treasure
Croix dite des Douze Apôtres, located in Logonna-Daoulas (Département 29), 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
- Logonna-Daoulas, Département 29, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.3264, -4.2725
- Mérimée Reference
- PA29000094
A stone sentinel at the crossroads of time, the Cross of the Twelve Apostles has stood guard since the late 16th century over a forgotten Breton path - a monolith probably thousands of years old, Christianised and sculpted between two ages of the world.
History
In the heart of Finistère, between Logonna-Daoulas and L'Hôpital-Camfrout, a wayside cross stands on the edge of an old byway that few walkers still use. The Cross of the Twelve Apostles is no ordinary monument: in its very substance, it embodies the silent dialogue between prehistoric Brittany and Christian Brittany. Two and a half metres of trapezoidal granite, the top crowned by a cross with a quadrangular cross-section, a rounded base placed on the ground like a fist - this is a presence that imposes itself without ostentation. What makes this cross truly singular is the ambiguous nature of its main monolith. Specialists agree that it is the replacement of something that predates the cross: a Neolithic menhir, an Iron Age funerary stele, or perhaps a Roman military marker. The stone, re-cut and christianised in the last quarter of the 16th century, thus carries with it centuries of superimposed sacred and secular uses, an invisible but palpable stratification for those who know how to look. The visit is an intimate and meditative experience. You can get there by walking along the hamlets of the Daoulas countryside, where the roads have hardly changed in centuries. The nearby hamlet of Rungléo offers the discreet rural setting that lovers of modest but meaningful heritage seek. The cross doesn't try to impress: it reveals itself gradually, in step with the visitor. Listed as a Monument Historique in 2015, the cross now enjoys official recognition, underlining the importance of small-scale Breton heritage, which is all too often overlooked. The wayside crosses form a memorial network that is unique in Europe, marking out the Armorican countryside with their stone silhouettes as spiritual and topographical landmarks. This one, with its probable prehistoric background, belongs to the rarest and most precious category of this group.
Architecture
The Cross of the Twelve Apostles is made up of three distinct elements assembled according to a simple and effective construction logic. At the base, a rounded block of rough granite acts as a plinth, ensuring the stability of the whole on the ground of the path. On this plinth rests the main monolith, the centrepiece of the composition: a block of grey granite with a trapezoidal cross-section and four slightly worked sides, 2.20 metres high, whose slender silhouette and slight downward flare are reminiscent of the Gallic funerary stelae typical of Finistère. The traces of recutting visible on its edges and faces bear witness to the Christian reappropriation work carried out in the 16th century. At the top of the monolith is a cross of quadrangular cross-section, with short arms and sharp edges, typical of rural lapidary production in the Daoulas region during the Renaissance. This cross, carved from the same local granite, is absolutely plain in its ornamentation, with no sculpted decoration or visible inscriptions. This contrasts with the monumental calvaries of the region, but is fully in keeping with the custom of modest wayside crosses for farming communities. The whole thing is made of local granite, a material that is omnipresent in the architecture and small-scale heritage of Finistère, whose hardness explains the cross's excellent preservation despite five centuries of exposure to the ocean's weather. The grey-green patina of the lichens covers part of the surface, harmoniously integrating the monument into its natural environment. The modest dimensions of the cross - estimated to be less than three metres high - are perfectly in keeping with the scale of the hedged path it marks out.
Related Figures
Artisans tailleurs de pierre locaux du pays de Daoulas (fin XVIe siècle) — christianisateurs anonymes du monolithePeuples de l'Âge du Fer armoricain — probable origine de la stèle réutiliséeCommunauté paroissiale de Logonna-Daoulas (XVIe-XXe siècle) — gardienne de la tradition orale liée à la croixService régional de l'Inventaire du patrimoine de Bretagne — acteur de la redécouverte et de la protection (2015)
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Croix dite des Douze Apôtres located?
Croix dite des Douze Apôtres is located in Logonna-Daoulas, Département 29 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Croix dite des Douze Apôtres built?
Croix dite des Douze Apôtres dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Croix dite des Douze Apôtres open to visitors?
Croix dite des Douze Apôtres is currently closed to visitors.