the Romanesque gate was reopened en 1969. Photo by Alain Dermigny.
[Alain-065]
[Illustration]
124. Dragey. The tower base has a gate with a triangular arch from the
13th century. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-066]
[Illustration]
125. Dragey. The north wall of the nave (inside). The inner plaster of
the side walls was scraped by the villagers to show the opus spicatum
(fishbone masonry), at the request of abbot Pierre Danguy, pastor of
the church between 1954 and 1974. The opus spicatum--with lines of
schist plates arranged horizontally--attests the church was built in
the 11th century and early 12th century. The long bay with a deep splay
is from the 13th century. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-067]
[Illustration]
126. Dragey. The north wall of the nave (inside). Villagers patiently
scraped the plaster to show the opus spicatum (fishbone masonry), a
sign their church was early Romanesque. The inner plaster now only
covers the last top quarter of the walls, probably too hard to reach.
Photo by Claude Rayon. [Claude-37]
[Illustration]
127. Dragey. The north wall of the nave (inside). The large trefoil bay
is from the 13th century. A walled-up Romanesque bay with a deep splay
is on the right, with an arch formed by a row of small granite quoins.
This Romanesque bay is the only remaining original bay in the church.
Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-068]
[Illustration]
128. Dragey. The north wall of the nave (inside). As the only remaining
original bay, this walled-up Romanesque bay has a deep splay, with an
arch formed by a row of small granite quoins. Photo by Claude Rayon.
[Claude-36]
[Illustration]
129. Dragey. The church choir. The bays of the choir we guess on each
side were enlarged in the 15th century. The choir was previously quite
dark, with a feeble light coming from two small Romanesque bays. Photo
by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-069]
[Illustration]
130. Dragey. The old baptismal font supports a holy water font. Photo
by Claude Rayon. [Claude-38]
[Illustration]
131. Dragey. The stained glass window of one large twin bay in the
south wall of the nave. This window is an ex-voto recounting one of the
many drownings occurring in the region. On 5 May 1921, Harry Iselin,
the son of a family of landowners near Dragey, drowned with an American
friend, back from walking back from Mont Saint-Michel while crossing
its dangerous shores. Photo by Claude Rayon. [Claude-39]
[Illustration]
132. Dragey. Detail of the stained glass window. On the top, the Mont
Saint-Michel, and below, a partial view of archangel St. Michael. This
large twin bay with a trefoil arch replaced in 1860 a rectangular
opening, that replaced itself a small Romanesque bay in 1790. This was
also the case for the other twin bays. Photo by Alain Dermigny.
[Alain-070]
[Illustration]
133. Genêts. Location. The village of Genêts is located on the current
coastal road between Granville and Avranches, 6 kilometers north of
Avranches. The village is facing Mont Saint-Michel, around 4 kilometers
far away. The medieval roads used by pilgrims to go to Mont
Saint-Michel started from Saint-Pair-sur-Mer, Coutances, Saint-Lô and
Caen to reach Genêts. Then they needed to cross dangerous shores to
reach Mont Saint-Michel, their final destination. In addition, the
shore road between Saint-Pair and Mont Saint-Michel was crossing Bec
d'Andaine, near Genêts.
[Illustration]
134. Genêts. The village and its church. The church tower--with its
saddleback roof, its balustrade and its gargoyles--emerges above the
roofs of the village. Genêts is a very old place. It was the tidal port
of Avranches, the capital of the region before its looting by the
Norman pirates in the 9th century. The barony of Genêts was given in
1022 to the Abbey of Mont Saint-Michel by Richard II, duke of Normandy,
as well as the baronies of Saint-Pair and Ardevon. The center of a
barony and a deanery, Genêts became an active town under the early
Norman dukes. In the early 14th century, there were nearly 3,000
inhabitants, and the church counted seven chapels and a full clergy.
This was the most flourishing period. During the Hundred Years War,
Genêts was looted, fleeced and burned by the British troops from 1356
on. During the Religion Wars between Catholics and Protestants, Genêts
was again sacked in 1562 by the troops of the Protestant Montgomery.
During the French Revolution, Genêts lost its juridiction of a
seneschal, its sergentery, its deanery, its fairs and its markets, and
went from being a town to being a village. The county town became
Sartilly. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-083]
[Illustration]
135. Genêts. The church, beautifully made, is the work of Robert
Torigni, abbot of Mont Saint-Michel between 1154 and 1186, who built it
on the site of an older timeworn church. The Romanesque church was
consecrated in 1157 by Herbert, bishop of Avranches, along with Roger,
abbot of Bec-Hellouin. The church and cemetery of Genêts were granted
the title of (French) Historic Monument in 1959. Photo by Claude Rayon.
[Claude-40]
[Illustration]
136. Genêts. The church is composed of a broad nave, a transept and a
three-row choir with a flat apse. A massive tower topped by a
saddleback roof rises at the transept crossing. The Romanesque parts
are the transept crossings, part of the transept arms and two-thirds of
the tower. The porch before the south gate in the nave is from the 16th
century. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-071]
[Illustration]
137. Genêts. The church plan. Regularly oriented from west to east, the
building is formed by a wide nave, a transept and a three-row choir
with a flat apse. The whole building has an external length of 53.7
meters. The external width of the nave is 10.8 meters (width of the
front). The first row of the choir opens north and south on two flat
apse chapels, that open themselves on the transept arms. Plan by Marie
Lebert.
[Illustration]
138. Genêts. The north wall. The tower is Romanesque for two-thirds of
its height. Its upper part was built in the early 16th century. The
nave was completely rebuilt in the mid-18th century. Photo by Alain
Dermigny. [Alain-072]
[Illustration]
139. Genêts. The Romanesque transept, with its north part and its gable
wall. The masonry is made from irregular blocks of schist and granite.
The schist is the local stone. The granite probably came from the
granite ground of Avranches a few miles south-east. The gable wall is
opened by a large semi-circular bay. Photo by Alain Dermigny.
[Alain-073]
[Illustration]
140. Genêts. The tower is situated at the transept crossing, with two
floors. It is Romanesque to two-thirds of his height, with blocks of
granite of medium size, while the top is from the early 16th century,
with much larger blocks of granite. The lower floor is blind. The upper
floor is open to the north, south and west by walled-up Romanesque twin
bays, that were extended by Gothic trefoil bays added in the early
16th century. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-074]
[Illustration]
141. Genêts. The tower is topped by a saddleback roof, the base of
which is hidden north and south by a balustrade with an openwork
design. Its corners are adorned with Gothic gargoyles shaped as dogs,
wolves and imaginary animals. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-075]
[Illustration]
142. Genêts. A Gothic gargoyle at another angle of the balustrade
hiding the base of the saddleback roof of the tower. Photo by Claude
Rayon. [Claude-41]
[Illustration]
143. Genêts. A Gothic gargoyle at another angle of the balustrade
hiding the base of the saddleback roof of the tower. Photo by Alain
Dermigny. [Alain-076]
[Illustration]
144. Genêts. The gate in the south transept. This heavy and simple gate
is from 11th century, with semi-circular plain grains and thick
columns. It probably belonged to the building that was prior to the
Romanesque church consecrated in 1157. The semi-circular arch is formed
of two thick non-molded grains. The external grain rests on two thick
attached columns topped by a square chamfered abacus, which goes on as
a chamfered band on the wall. The capital basket is carved with barely
visible angle hooks. The outside ground level is now at the same level
as the start of the column trunk. The square base is topped by a double
torus is below ground level. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-077]
[Illustration]
145. Genêts. Sketch of the gate in the south transept. Sketch by Marie
Lebert.
[Illustration]
146. Genêts. The Romanesque transept crossing is bounded by four strong
square piers. The two west piers are attached to the transept and the
nave. They receive four thick triangular arches that surround the
groin vault above the transept crossing. The first row of the choir
opens north and south on two flat apse chapels, that open themselves
on the transept arms. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-078]
[Illustration]
147. Genêts. The Romanesque transept crossing. The piers support four
thick slightly triangular arches that surround the groin vault above
the transept crossing. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-079]
[Illustration]
148. Genêts. The Romanesque transept crossing. The four piers are
perfectly symmetrical, with two flat non-molded sides and two other
sides with two attached twin columns on a backwall, that support the
triangular arches. On one angle of each pillar, an attached column
supports the spring of one arris of the vault. Each pillar is topped by
a large impost molded with a chamfered band. Photo by Claude Rayon.
[Claude-46]
[Illustration]
149. Genêts. The Romanesque transept crossing. One of the tower piers.
Two sides have a flat non-molded surface. On the other two sides, the
arches are received by two attached twin columns on a backwall. In one
corner, an attached column receives the spring of one arris of the
vault. The carved basket capitals are topped by a thick square abacus.
The square bases are topped by a double torus. The pier itself rests on
a broader square base. The other three pillars are perfectly
symmetrical to this one. Photo by Claude Rayon. [Claude-45]
[Illustration]
150. Genêts. Sketch of the south-east pier in the transept crossing.
This pier is topped by an impost molded with a chamfered band. East and
south, the pier has a flat non-molded surface. North and west, the
arches are received by two attached twin columns on a backwall. At the
north-west angle, an attached column receives the spring of one arris
of the vault. The carved capital baskets are topped by a thick square
abacus. The pier itself rests on a broader square base. Sketch by Marie
Lebert.
[Illustration]
151. Genêts. Detail of the north-west pier in the transept crossing.
The capital baskets, carved in low relief, are adorned with plant
designs such as chestnut leaves, oak leaves with acorns, and vine
leaves. Other baskets are carved with grapes, animal designs--such as
hares running around--or geometric designs--such as small arches and
prominent bands. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-080]
[Illustration]
152. Genêts. The porch. This large porch, from the 16th century, stands
before the south gate of the nave, which is from the 13th century. The
porch has offered pilgrims and parishioners two stone benches and a
shelter from rain and western winds coming from the sea. Photo by
Claude Rayon. [Claude-44]
[Illustration]
153. Genêts. The porch from the 16th century is topped by a wooden
frame added in the 18th century. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-082]
[Illustration]
154. Genêts. The porch. Detail of the wooden frame added in the 18th
century. Photo by Claude Rayon. [Claude-42]
[Illustration]
155. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. Location. The village of
Saint-Léonard-de-Vains is located at the very end of the cape of Grouin
du Sud, 2.5 kilometers from the village of Vains and 7 kilometers from
the town of Avranches. The priory church stands in front of the bay of
Mont Saint-Michel and the rock of Tombelaine. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains
was the final village of the medieval road coming from Caen. Then the
pilgrims needed to cross the dangerous shores to reach Mont
Saint-Michel, their final destination. The priory church has become a
private property since the French Revolution, and the village is now
part of the parish of Vains.
[Illustration]
156. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. Winter panorama. The village and its
priory church under the snow, at the end of the winter. Photo by Alain
Dermigny. [Alain-084]
[Illustration]
157. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. Winter panorama. The village and its
priory church, seen a little closer, at the end of the winter. Photo by
Alain Dermigny. [Alain-085]
[Illustration]
158. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. Spring panorama taken from inside the
priory. From there, the Mont Saint-Michel seems to open itself to
pilgrims and travellers. Saint-Léonard is a very old village. St.
Leonard lived there in the 6th century before being elected the eighth
bishop of Avranches in 578. The village was then invaded by the Normans
in the 9th century. After the Norman conquest, the village was part of
the duke of Normandy's territory, and the fief of the lords of Vains.
In 1087, shortly before his death, William the Conqueror gave the
priory to the Abbey of Saint-Etienne in Caen. In 1158, Henry II
confirmed this donation, which included a mansion, arable lands and
vineyards, as well as salines with the right to fish and to collect
kelp. Photo by Claude Rayon. [Claude-47]
[Illustration]
159. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. Spring panorama taken from inside the
priory. The priory was a simple priory, that is to say a small
monastery where some religious men detached from a main abbey were
living under the direction of a prior, but without taking care of other
souls (unlike a pastor for his parishoniers). The priory church was the
property of the abbey of Saint-Etienne in Caen until the French
Revolution. Photo by Claude Rayon. [Claude-50]
[Illustration]
160. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The priory was sold in 1793, during the
French Revolution, and the buyer turned the church into a farm
building. In an article from the periodical Le Pays de Granville dated
December 1976, Jean Bindet recounted that, "after the nationalization
of the church properties in November 1789 and the sale of national
properties from 1791 on, the priory and dovecote were left abandoned,
and their ruins, with the church that had not suffered too much, were
sold in 1793 for the sum of 200 francs in banknotes ... The buyer,
wanting its purchase to fructify, decided to transform the church into
a farm building. The choir of the ancient church became a kitchen with
a fireplace built in the apse; the nave became a barn and a stable; the
tower itself was used: the base as a cellar, and the floor was divided
into a room and an attic, and topped with a chimney." The priory
remained a farm for a long time, as evidenced by the cow behind the
fence. This old photo was digitized by Claude Rayon. [Claude-48]
[Illustration]
161. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The priory church is still a private
property in the late 20th century, but no longer a farm. In cooperation
with the (French) Historic Monuments, the owner has turned the nave
into a house by opening rectangular windows and revamping the interior.
In 1985, date of this photo, the tower and the choir are still in bad
shape. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-086]
[Illustration]
162. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The priory church. The nave has become the
owner's house in the late 20th century, which explains the rectangular
doors and windows. The building has retained its original form though,
with a nave strengthened by buttresses and a two-row choir with a flat
apse. The tower, between choir and nave, is topped by a saddleback
roof. In 1985, the tower and the choir have not been restored yet.
Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-087]
[Illustration]
163. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The priory church. On this Photo by the
1980s, we still see the stairs leading to the first floor of the tower
(they doesn't exist any more), as well as the rectangular openings of
the tower and the choir, and the chimney above the choir. Photo by
Marie Lebert. [Marie-19]
[Illustration]
164. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The priory church. On this recent Photo by
2009, the large rectangular openings pierced in the choir and the tower
have been replaced by small bays of Romanesque style. The stairs
leading to the first floor of the tower were removed, like the chimney
above the choir. The building is back to its former beauty. Photo by
Claude Rayon. [Claude-49]
[Illustration]
165. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The plan of the priory church. Regularly
oriented from west to east, the building is formed of a nave and a
two-row choir with a flat apse. The whole building has an external
length of 32.75 meters and an external width of 9.65 meters (width of
the front). The tower rises between choir and nave. Plan by Marie
Lebert.
[Illustration]
166. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The Romanesque tower is from the early
12th century. Situated in the extension of the choir, its square base
is topped by two floors in slight recess. The first floor was probably
blind originally, with openings pierced after the French Revolution.
The second floor is opened north, east and south by two twin
semi-circular arches. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-088]
[Illustration]
167. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The Romanesque tower. The masonry is made
of irregular blocks of schist and granite, with a few rows of regular
granite blocks. The saddleback roof rests north and south on a cornice
supported by modillions. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-089]
[Illustration]
168. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The Romanesque tower. On three
sides--north, east and south--the second floor is adorned with two twin
semi-circular arches, with a double grain formed by two rows of granite
quoins. The arch rests on plain abutments through a square abacus, that
goes on as an horizontal band along the wall. The cornice is supported
by modillions carved with rough human heads or molded in quarter-round.
Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-090]
[Illustration]
169. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The Romanesque tower. The second floor of
the tower and its saddleback roof. Two birds are resting. Photo by
Claude Rayon. [Claude-51]
[Illustration]
170. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The base of the Romanesque tower and its
north wall. This wall is strengthened by a central buttress surrounded
by two semi-circular bays with an arch formed by a row of granite
quoins. The lowered arch and abutments of the door are made of large
blocks of granite. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-091]
[Illustration]
171. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The base of the Romanesque tower and its
north wall. The lower part of the wall consists of an opus spicatum
(fishbone masonry) characterizing the 11th or early 12th century. The
masonry of the upper part of the wall is made of regular blocks of
granite. A row of badly damaged modillions is still visible above the
bays. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-092]
[Illustration]
172. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The base of the Romanesque tower, and its
gate with its semi-circular arch and abutments in granite. The opus
spicatum (fishbone masonry) of the masonry is a sign the church is
early Romanesque. Photo by Claude Rayon. [Claude-52]
[Illustration]
173. Saint-Léonard-de-Vains. The base of the Romanesque tower. Inside,
the tower rests on massive piers. Photo by Claude Rayon. [Claude-53]
[Illustration]
174. Saint-Loup. Location. Saint-Loup (also called
Saint-Loup-sous-Avranches) is located south-east of Avranches, only 6
kilometers from the town, in a hilly region close to the granite ground
of Avranches, making granite stones easily accessible.
[Illustration]
175. Saint-Loup. The church is the only entirely Romanesque building
remaining in the region. Built by the lords of Saint-Loup, the church
was under St. Loup's patronage. The second saint is St. Gilles. The
parish belonged to the deanery of Tirepied and the archidiachoné of
Avranches. The nave has three rows. The north and south walls are
strenghtened by four buttresses on each side. Three small semi-circular
bays are still visible, two in the south wall and one in the north
wall. The other bays were opened or enlarged thereafter. The church was
granted the title of (French) Historic Monument in 1921. Photo by Alain
Dermigny. [Alain-093]
[Illustration]
176. Saint-Loup. The church plan. Regularly oriented from west to east,
the building is formed by a two-row nave and a three-row choir with a
semi-circular apse. The whole building has an external length of 31
meters and an external width of 8.2 meters (width of the front). The
tower rises above the first row of the choir. The north side chapel
along the second row of the choir was added in 1602 by the lords of
Saint-Loup. Plan by Marie Lebert and Bernard Beck.
[Illustration]
177. Saint-Loup. The Romanesque west front. Strenghtened by two
buttresses, the front wall is topped by a slight glacis behind which
rises the gable wall. The bay with a triangular arch above the
Romanesque gate is probably from the 13th century. Photo by Alain
Dermigny. [Alain-094]
[Illustration]
178. Saint-Loup. The Romanesque west gate. Its semi-circular arch is
formed of two grains surrounded by a archivolt, which is a chamfered
band. Each grain has the following moldings: a thick angle torus, a
listel, a shallow cavetto and a row of carved hollow saw-teeth. The
grains rest on four attached columns. Molded in quarter-round, the
capital abaci go on as an horizontal band along the wall. The baskets
are carved with rough sculptures: angle hooks or angle heads whose
features were erased with the test of time. The square bases are
adorned with a torus topping a chamfer carved with barely visible small
claws. They rest on a small stone wall going on along the whole length
of the front. The lintel is a big monolith block of granite, and it is
topped by an opus reticulatum (diamond-shaped masonry) of
diamond-shaped stones. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-095]
[Illustration]
179. Saint-Loup. Sketch of the Romanesque west gate. Sketch by Marie
Lebert.
[Illustration]
180. Saint-Loup. The south wall of the choir. In the first row, the
south gate is flanked by two flat buttresses. Between these buttresses,
above the gate, the masonry is supported by a cornice with three large
carved modillions. The first modillion is a grotesque human being
putting his right hand to his mouth while folding his left arm. The
second modillion is a human head. The third modillion is a crouched
human being, with his hands on his knees. Photo by Alain Dermigny.
[Alain-097]
[Illustration]
181. Saint-Loup. The Romanesque tower rises above the first row of the
choir. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-096]
[Illustration]
182. Saint-Loup. The Romanesque tower. The masonry of its walls is made
of regular granite blocks, that are smaller than for other parts of the
church. The granite was extracted from the granite ground of
Avranches, that is close to Saint-Loup. In the foreground, on the
right, this buttress belongs to the north side chapel adjacent to the
second row of the choir. This chapel was added in 1602 by the lords of
Saint-Loup. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-098]
[Illustration]
183. Saint-Loup. The Romanesque tower. This square tower consists of
two floors topped by a spire. The first floor is ornated north and
south with large blind arcades. The second floor is opened by a bay on
each side. The level between the two floors is underlined by a
chamfered band. Photo by Alain Dermigny. [Alain-099]
[Illustration]