Croix du 17e siècle
MonumentHidden Treasure
Croix du 17e siècle, located in Plusquellec (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
- Plusquellec, Département 22, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.3848, -3.4847
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00089530
Standing in the Plusquellec cemetery, this monumental 17th-century cross embodies the very soul of inland Brittany: kersanton stone and Breton granite, sculpted calvary, listed as a Historic Monument since 1926.
History
In the heart of Côtes-d'Armor, in the unassuming village of Plusquellec, the parish cemetery is home to one of those silent witnesses that deep-rooted Brittany has managed to preserve against all the odds: a 17th-century funerary cross, listed as a Historic Monument by decree of 24 March 1926. In this region of Central Brittany, where the Catholic faith and Breton culture have always maintained an unbreakable bond, cemetery crosses are more than mere ornaments: they are the beating heart of the community of the living and the dead. What sets this cross apart from the many Breton examples is the quality of its craftsmanship and the integrity of its state of preservation. Carved from local granite in bluish-grey tones, it has the robustness characteristic of works of the period, designed to defy the centuries and the Atlantic weather. The slender shaft, cross-brace and Christ-like sculptures reveal the hand of a local workshop with a perfect command of the iconographic codes of the Counter-Reformation, a period during which the Catholic Church invested heavily in embellishing funerary spaces to reassert its symbolic power. To visit this cross is to agree to slow down and read the Breton landscape differently. The Plusquellec cemetery, which surrounds or adjoins the parish church, offers an intimate, peaceful setting typical of rural villages in the Kreiz-Breizh region. The cross stands central and hieratic, in a space where time seems suspended. Each sculpted detail invites close observation: the Christ on the cross, any standing figures at the foot of the shaft, the plant or geometric motifs adorning the base. The natural setting reinforces the emotion of the heritage: the Monts d'Arrée on the horizon, the surrounding moors and hedged farmland make up a background that has hardly changed since the Breton stonemasons erected this monument. Whether you're a lover of rural heritage, a photographer sensitive to the glimmering morning light on the grey stone, or simply a traveller in search of authenticity, this cross is an invaluable stop-off point on the route of Breton calvaries and monuments.
Architecture
The cemetery cross at Plusquellec belongs to the Breton cross-calvary type of the 17th century, characterised by a cylindrical or slightly tapering square shaft resting on a truncated cone-shaped or prismatic base with several projections. This type of composition, typical of the workshops in Central Brittany, aims to give the impression of a monumental elevation despite its modest dimensions, generally between two and four metres in total height. The material used is local granite, a stone that is ubiquitous in the Corlay area, with shades ranging from light grey to blue-grey depending on the degree of mica and feldspar. The hardness of this granite makes sculpting difficult, but gives the works exceptional durability in the harsh Breton weather. At the centre of the cross is a Christ on the Cross, sculpted in bas-relief or in the round, using the iconographic conventions of the Baroque period: suffering body, bowed head, finely pleated perizonium drapery. It is possible that the reverse of the crosspiece features a Virgin of Pity or a figure of a saint, as was common practice in central Brittany. The base of the cross deserves particular attention: the bases of Breton crosses from the 17th century often feature recessed motifs - cordons, tores, chamfers - which betray the influence of itinerant workshops trained in late Renaissance techniques. The quality of the assembly of the stone blocks and the precision of the mouldings bear witness to a high level of local craftsmanship, the heir to a long tradition of stone-cutting dating back to the major parish projects of the 16th century.
Related Figures
Recteur de Plusquellec au XVIIe siècle (commanditaire probable de la croix, représentant de l'autorité ecclésiastique paroissiale)Membres de la fabrique paroissiale de Plusquellec (financeurs laïcs de l'érection du monument)Tailleur de pierre breton anonyme (artisan local ou itinérant, auteur de la sculpture, probablement formé dans un atelier du pays de Corlay ou de Carhaix)Inspecteur des Monuments Historiques (auteur du dossier d'inscription de 1926, non identifié dans les sources disponibles)Seigneurs de Plusquellec (famille noble locale, possibles mécènes du monument au XVIIe siècle)
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Croix du 17e siècle located?
Croix du 17e siècle is located in Plusquellec, Département 22 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Croix du 17e siècle built?
Croix du 17e siècle dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Croix du 17e siècle open to visitors?
Croix du 17e siècle is currently closed to visitors.
