Abbey Church of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe

The Romanesque church was begun in the mid-11th century and contains many beautiful 11th- and 12th-century murals which are still in a remarkable state of preservation. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983.

The cruciform church carries a square tower over its crossing. The transept was built first, then the choir with its ambulatory with five radial chapels in the polygonal apse. In the next building campaign, three bays of the nave were added, the bell tower and its porch, and finally the last six bays of the nave. The bell tower is finished by a fine stone spire more than 80 meters high, added in the 14th century and restored in the 19th century.

The barrel vaulted nave is supported on magnificently-scaled columns with foliate capitals.

Below the church is the crypt of the martyr brothers St Savin and St Cyprian, decorated with frescos depicting scenes from their lives.

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  12th century Romanesque mural (God speaks to Noah)
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  Fresco, Sts Savinus and Cyprian are tortured

• French Romanesque architecture

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Abbey Church of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe.

• Fully illustrated description of the church (in French)