ÉGLISE SAINT-HIPPOLYTE
Loupian Religious sites
Contact
ÉGLISE SAINT-HIPPOLYTE
Rue de la Grande Église
34140
LOUPIAN
Presentation
The Church of Saint-Hippolyte is a Romanesque building, dating from the second half of the 12th century. Since its construction, the building has contributed to the defense of the village, even if the crenellations above the apse seem to date from later in the 12th century. The polygonal apse features three narrow windows set within large, flat skylights on each side of the polygon.
The church door is on the opposite side, inside the old village (Place Charles de Gaulle). The opening is surmounted by a scrolled arch, clearly horseshoe-shaped, resting on two capitals. The presence of a horseshoe arch in a Romanesque building is surprising. This type of arch was mainly used during the Visigothic period, before being adopted by Muslim architecture.
Inside, the nave is barrel-vaulted and divided into three bays by large double arches. These are supported by powerful engaged columns, the lower part of which was partially destroyed at some undetermined time. Between each column, a semicircular relieving arch reduces the thickness of the walls, which are sometimes pierced by openings that are now blocked.
The building is dark, with light only coming in through a small bay above the triumphal arch and the three splayed windows in the choir.
The originality of Saint-Hippolyte lies above all in its apse. Polygonal in plan, it is covered by a cul-de-four made from small rectangular blocks placed in a herringbone pattern and assembled into several vaulting "quarters". Unexpectedly, four toric arches, crossing each other in pairs, can be seen beneath the vault. This decoration, which rests on slender, tapering colonnettes, knows no comparison, at least in the local context. As Romanesque art is above all functional (each architectural element contributes to the stability of the building), the presence of these fanciful torus arches is hard to explain.
Classified as a historic monument since 1923, the building hosts exhibitions and concerts every year.
Open to the public in summer.
The church door is on the opposite side, inside the old village (Place Charles de Gaulle). The opening is surmounted by a scrolled arch, clearly horseshoe-shaped, resting on two capitals. The presence of a horseshoe arch in a Romanesque building is surprising. This type of arch was mainly used during the Visigothic period, before being adopted by Muslim architecture.
Inside, the nave is barrel-vaulted and divided into three bays by large double arches. These are supported by powerful engaged columns, the lower part of which was partially destroyed at some undetermined time. Between each column, a semicircular relieving arch reduces the thickness of the walls, which are sometimes pierced by openings that are now blocked.
The building is dark, with light only coming in through a small bay above the triumphal arch and the three splayed windows in the choir.
The originality of Saint-Hippolyte lies above all in its apse. Polygonal in plan, it is covered by a cul-de-four made from small rectangular blocks placed in a herringbone pattern and assembled into several vaulting "quarters". Unexpectedly, four toric arches, crossing each other in pairs, can be seen beneath the vault. This decoration, which rests on slender, tapering colonnettes, knows no comparison, at least in the local context. As Romanesque art is above all functional (each architectural element contributes to the stability of the building), the presence of these fanciful torus arches is hard to explain.
Classified as a historic monument since 1923, the building hosts exhibitions and concerts every year.
Open to the public in summer.
Destination
ÉGLISE SAINT-HIPPOLYTE
Rue de la Grande Église
34140
LOUPIAN
GPS coordinates
Latitude : 43.447674
Longitude : 3.6157583