Croix du Point du Jour
MonumentHidden Treasure
Croix du Point du Jour, located in Saint-Allouestre (Département 56), 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
- Saint-Allouestre, Département 56, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.9200, -2.7209
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00091656
A stone sentinel in the heart of Morbihan, the Point du Jour Cross has a soberly elegant 17th-century octagonal shaft, crowned by a crucifix and a Virgin carved in bas-relief from a single block of granite.
History
At the crossroads of the rural roads in Saint-Allouestre, a discreet village in inland Morbihan, the Croix du Point du Jour stands as a spiritual and geographical landmark that has been part of the Breton landscape since the 17th century. Listed as a historic monument since 1934, it belongs to that precious family of wayside crosses that dot deepest Brittany, silent witnesses to popular piety and the art of local stonework. What sets this cross apart from the hundreds of similar buildings scattered across the region is the uniqueness of its sculptural treatment. The top is not a classic cross in the round, but a rectangular block with a pointed top into which the crucifix is literally hollowed out, as if torn from the material. This sober, meditative, hollowed-out technique gives the work an unusual, almost austere presence, in stark contrast to the baroque exuberance of some contemporary crosses. On the opposite side, visitors will discover a Virgin sculpted according to the same principle - two sacred figures, back to back, watching over the two directions of the path. This iconographic duality, Christ and Mary united in a single block of stone, in itself tells the whole story of the theological programme of Breton Catholicism under the Ancien Régime. The setting itself adds to the experience: the hedged farmlands of central Morbihan, with their dense hedgerows and narrow roads, offer the silence that hikers and lovers of rural heritage seek far from the mass tourist circuits. The Croix du Point du Jour is one of the monuments that rewards those who stray from the main roads to discover authentic Brittany.
Architecture
The Croix du Point du Jour is based on the formal grammar of the great Breton crosses, but with some remarkable stylistic differences. Its most distinctive feature is its slender octagonal shaft, carved from the grey granite typical of the inland Morbihan region. The octagonal section, preferred to the square or round shape, reflects a local decorative tradition that allows the edges and facets of the stone surface to be animated according to the time of day and the light. At the top of the shaft rests a rectangular block with a pointed end - a shape similar to a flute mouthpiece or mitre - in which the crucifix is carved in hollow rather than in relief. This inversion of the usual plastic treatment is the most striking originality of the cross: Christ is not modelled as a projection on the stone, but as if incised into the material, giving the figure an almost iconic quality, akin to oriental representations or engraved signs. The reverse of the block features the Virgin using the same process, creating a coherent and symbolically powerful two-sided composition. The materials used are exclusively granite, a stone that is ubiquitous in Morbihan and perfectly suited to intaglio carving thanks to its homogenous texture. Sober and devoid of superfluous ornamentation, the whole expresses an aesthetic of restraint that contrasts with the monumental calvaries of the Quimper or Saint-Thégonnec region, reflecting the different taste of the patrons of central Morbihan for a less theatrical religiosity.
Related Figures
Artisan tailleur de pierre local (XVIIe siècle) — auteur anonyme de la sculptureCurés de la paroisse de Saint-Allouestre (XVIIe siècle) — commanditaires probables de l'édificeMembres de la Société Polymathique du Morbihan (XIXe-XXe siècle) — inventeurs et défenseurs du monumentÉdouard Herriot (Ministre de l'Instruction publique, 1934) — signataire de la politique d'inscription des croix bretonnes aux MHSaint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort — missionnaire dont l'influence spirituelle irrigue la dévotion mariale bretonne du XVIIe siècle
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Croix du Point du Jour located?
Croix du Point du Jour is located in Saint-Allouestre, Département 56 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Croix du Point du Jour built?
Croix du Point du Jour dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Croix du Point du Jour open to visitors?
Croix du Point du Jour is currently closed to visitors.
