Memory of Stones
Basilica of Notre Dame de Fourvière in Lyon
The Notre-Dame de Fourvière basilica, which dominates a large part of Lyon from the top of the Fourvière hill, was built in 1896 by the architects Bossan and Sainte-Marie Perrin. It was built from a public subscription in 1870 and consecrated in 1896.
From the top of the hill that prays, as opposed to the Croix Rousse, the hill that works, the basilica dedicated to the Virgin Mary is classified as a historical monument. It is part of the Lyon site listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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Today, the emblem of the city of Lyon, the basilica welcomes more than 2.5 million pilgrims and visitors each year.
The monument pays homage to the Virgin Mary, whose worship has been going on for centuries.
The building has many styles. The rather sober exterior contrasts with the exuberant and opulent interior, of Byzantine inspiration.
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A majestic decor
In addition to this, you need to know more about it.
The interior of the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière is made up of two superimposed churches, with extraordinary volumes, accessible from the square. The high church is dominated by three domes and lit by six stained glass windows that provide light highlighting a rich decor. The materials used for construction and decoration compete in quality and beauty, white Carrara marble, pink granite from northern Italy, blue marble from Savoy, green onyx, shards of silver and gold, wedding ebony and ivory.
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Entering the upper church, one is struck by its volume and the diversity of its decoration, the luminous stained-glass windows and the gold mosaics whose brilliance is striking. On the walls, we can read the name of all the parishes that participated in the construction of this basilica.
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Made up of three large naves and three pointed arched bays, the whole of the high church is supported by sixteen columns. Eight chapels are present and the apse is lit thanks to seven high windows. On the side walls, six 50 square meter mosaic panels, by Charles Lameire and Georges Décote, illustrate on the left, Mary's relationship to the Church, on the right, Mary's relationship to France.
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In addition to this, you need to know more about it.
The three naves are surmounted by three cupolas comprising three groups of images representing the relationship of Mary with the Trinity.
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The whole is supported by sixteen polychrome columns, monolith of Sieix, on Carrara marble plinths, grouped in pairs.
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The 6 wall mosaics were made from the cartoons of Charles Lameire and beautifully executed by the Martin workshops in Paris. We can see Joan of Arc delivering Orleans, the arrival of Saint Pothin in Lyon, the Council of Ephesus, the vow of Louis XIII, the Battle of Lepanto, the proclamation of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception.
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In the eight chapels, one can admire the works of Larrivé, Castex, Millefaut, Puech, Dufraine, Belloni and Guillaume which are of great diversity.
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The altar is raised by eight steps. Ten winged angels on gold mosaic surround the tabernacle. Above, sits a statue of the Virgin Mary, the work of Millefaut, in Carrara marble. The apse, lit by seven high windows, is adorned with five stained-glass windows after the cartoons of Gaspard Poncet. The other stained-glass windows are, for the six main ones, the work of Décote, a pupil of Gustave Moreau.
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The Lyon painter Victor Orsel produced a huge painting. Today it can be seen at the rear of the basilica. It is an allegory of the defeat of the cholera epidemic.
It was started in 1833 by the painter and finished by his pupil after his death. It is 6.75 meters high and 5 meters wide.
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From the upper church one reaches the crypt (lower church) by a red marble staircase , masterpiece of Sainte-Marie Perrin, with double revolution. From the landing you can access the chapel of the Pietà.
We then enter a dark, impressive place that is this vast chapel dedicated to Joseph. This place is defined as being that which symbolizes the Old Testament and the ignorance of men before the coming of Christ. We will thus understand why Pierre Bossan wanted to make it an obligatory passage for pilgrims to finally access the high church bathed in light, where the scale of the decoration and the polychromy are striking.
These vaults , which are less than 10 m high, are supported by fluted pillars flanked by thirty eight columns also fluted. Angels support the fallout from the vaults. Seven windows light up the sanctuary. The thirty stalls in the forecourt are in carved oak, inlaid with ebony and ivory.
Pierre Bossan made an important donation to decorate the choir of the Crypt.
The pavement surrounding the altar is formed by ten medallions connected by foliage where evil animals represent the vanquished heresies: the 7 capital sins, like evil, represented by a dragon with seven heads, pride represented by a peacock, or again the turtle imagining laziness.
Above the altar, a colossal statue, in golden stone, of Saint Joseph carrying the infant Jesus , is the work of the sculptor Fabisch. Under the altar, is represented, in high relief, the death of the Saint-Patriarch.