サン＝マルタン＝デュ＝ヴィヴィエのおすすめツーリングルート

Also a very magnificent building in the middle of the city.

Also a proud and imposing church not far from the cathedral.

Saint-Maclou Church

, single track in the forest

It is one of the most famous Gothic church buildings in the world, thanks to Claude Monet, and can be seen in several of his paintings. It was destroyed by the Vikings in 841 and by Allied bombs in 1944. It has been rebuilt time and again, undergoing 700 years of architectural development. Its west façade is particularly worth seeing. By the way: its church tower is the highest in France.

The Aître Saint-Maclou is a former plague cemetery from the Middle Ages. In the 16th century, the burials of plague victims took place in the central courtyard. The complex is decorated with a carved dance of death. Guided tours and audio guides offer an insight into this tunnel cemetery, which is one of the last of its kind in Europe.

A jewel of flamboyant Gothic architecture, its façade, a veritable stone lace, gives a real impression of grace and lightness. The church was badly damaged during the bombings of World War II, but the five-sided porch with its tympanum and carved wood wings, a Renaissance masterpiece, remained intact.

Once the municipality's plague cemetery, the buildings, which were built during the plague year of 1348, now serve as the home of the regional art school. The "Aître Saint-Maclou" is considered to be practically the only surviving plague cemetery of its kind in Europe. The wood carvings on the facades are well worth seeing.