Abbaye Sainte Foy

This beautiful Abbey Church dedicated to Sainte Foy anchors the village of Conques. The church was built in the 11th century on the site of a 10th century basilica and is a fine example of Romanesque architecture. The main body of the church and its cloister were completed by 1107. Almost destroyed by fire 1568 during conflict between Protestants and Catholics, the church fell into disrepair over the next two centuries. It was restored under the direction of Prosper Merimee in the late 1800's. If you click here, you can see an awesome photo of the backside of the Abbey and its round chevet.

This is a photo of the great doors opening into the church capped by its famous tympanum. It depicts the Final Judgement and was inspired by the Gospel of Saint Matthew. You can see that the stone still carries some of the color that once covered all the figures.

This is Sainte Foy being blessed by the hand of God. Her relics are venerated in this Abbey church and her treasure is on display in the cloister shown below. As beautiful as the outside of Sainte Foy's church is, the inside is even more stunning. I'll blog about it tomorrow, so check back.