Madone del Poggio Church
Description
The church of the Madonna del Poggio proudly stands with its pure lines at the eastern entrance to Saorge; it can only be visited from the outside.
In the year 1092, the community of men and women of Saorge donated a chapel Sainte Marie located in the "Poggio" to the Cistercian Abbey of the Iles de Lérins...
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Additional information
Price(s)
Free of charge.
Updated by
Office de Tourisme Menton, Riviera & Merveilles - 17/04/2024
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History, culture and heritage
The monks of Lérins lived in Saorge for about seven centuries.
The Church of the Madonna del Poggio (Poggio comes from the Latin Podium which gave the French Puy, dominant point) is of a pure ancient Romanesque art enhanced with frescoes (including a relief of Saint Lucia inside and 15th century frescoes attributed to Baleison outside and in the central apse). A beam of Glory carries a very primitive Christ.
A magnificent seven-storey Lombard bell tower completes the building.
Today, this chapel is privately owned and can be visited on certain days of the year, especially on the occasion of the Heritage Days.
CHAPITEAU
The columns made up of hard stone drums, superimposed and not fitted, are not hollowed out of any gorge, but moulded. On the other hand, the capitals, cut from the same material as the drums, are decorated with foliage of a dry style with vigorous design, and surmounted by angular hewers.
SAINT LUCIA
Of the many mural frescoes in the chapel, only the one that represents Saint Lucia has not been painted. In the middle of the nineteenth century, for unknown reasons, the bishop of Ventimiglia, Monseigneur Galvano, had these paintings covered, mostly made between 170 and 1480. That of Saint Lucia, of an almost modern franchise, is most certainly the work of a 16th century artist.
CHOIR AND MAJOR ALTAR
Located in the choir, the high altar is surmounted by a classical altarpiece whose paintings have been removed. Between two frames formed by rough columns with Corinthian capitals and entablements, there was probably originally a series of painted medallions devoted to the mysteries of the Rosary or to the scenes of the Passion.
The central niche has a pedestal probably reported.
CHRIST
The chapel consists of a nave with three bays bordered by collateral and finished by an apse flanked by two apses. This apse is decorated with frescoes depicting scenes from the life of the Virgin: the Coronation, Mary in the Temple, her marriage to Joseph, the Annunciation, the Nativity...
Realized at the end of the 15th century, these paintings are probably the work of Jean Baleison. Among the church’s ornamentation is a polygonal tabernacle from the Second Renaissance.
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