Paris1972-Versailles2003

Now this is a dandy beautiful monument of my belle France. I need to tell you more because of new older pictures found in my cd roms vault ,and should be in my blog for you and me. We have sillonned the area by car many times and in addition to monuments visit cousins on wife’s side. The City of Albi is worth the detour, and the cathedral a must to see, Therefore, here again my take on the Cathédrale Sainte Cécile of Albi ,part II !!!  Hope you enjoy the post as I.

Two centuries will have been necessary for its edification, from 1282 to 1480. The Sainte Cécile Cathedral surprises by the contrast between its austere exterior appearance of a military fortress and the pictorial and sculptural richness of its interior. Monument without equal, it asserts its power through a typical style of southwestern France, southern Gothic. Its unique style is reinforced by its interior design. In addition to her archiepiscopal Church status, it was raised as a Minor Basilica, a dignity given by Pope Pius XII in 1947. The celebrations were presided over by Mgr Roncalli, Apostolic Nuncio to Paris, future Pope John XXIII. The Cathedral is on the Unesco World Heritage List, and is today one of the most visited Cathedrals in France. A must to see, yes !!

The roodle and the Grande-Choir, with their statuary done between 1474 and 1484, It is the choir of the canons of the cathedral, The function of this choir is to delimit the most sacred space of the cathedral , that is to say his sanctuary, the place of the real presence, the Eucharistic celebration and the canonial offices. It presents itself as a real monument in the cathedral, a miniature church,in the large one. Outstanding the Old Testament is represented: prophets and kings of Israel; Inside are figured characters from the New Testament: the twelve apostles, as well as the Virgin Mary, Saint John the Baptist, Saint Paul , and countless cherubs, accompanied by Saint Cécile.

The paintings of the vault and the walls done from 1509-1514, the work of painters from the region of Bologna ,Italy , The vault is the largest painted surface in the world (100 × 20). Never restored, only admire the bright color. On order of Louis II d’Amboise by Italian painters , On the sides of the vault, lit by the openings of the stained glass, are arranged those which are lit directly by Christ: the apostles, the procession of the Holy and Saints, Sainte Cécile . Between the arabesques of the triangles of the vault, the angels join the elected officials to sing the praise of God. Around the Christ of the Parousia, with the fallout from the vault, are painted the apostles and the Virgin: they symbolize the Church, since the Holy Spirit is given to them when they are gathered in prayer on the day of Pentecost. In a golden mandorle, they surround the light Christ of the world. The painters thus affirm that the Church is, by the divine will, the privileged place of the covenant, that its mission is to conduct men towards salvation, towards the kingdom of God.

With the absidial vault where the glorious Christ sits, the doctors of the church, Saint Gregory and Saint Amboise are between the symbols of the evangelists and the painting of awakening. In the absidial vault, the glorious Christ is surrounded by the symbols of the four evangelists and then by the painting of four doctors of the Latin Church; The latter are sitting behind a balustrade and represented above Adam and Eve.

The Chair to preach in marble and stucco was installed in 1776, The tank is supported by two committed and draped Atlanteans. Polygonal in shape, it has a sculpted decor of oves and polychrome marble tables. The set supports a dome shades on which takes place a decor in relief of marble and stucco. In the lower part, two committed Atlanteans support the Chair’s Tank at the top of the lampshade are installed angels and cherubs emerging from the clouds. The main angel designates the sky of the finger while a putti during an eagle designates a book on which words in Hebrew are inscribed.

It was named in honor of Sainte Cécile, martyr at Rome in 232 and Patron Saint of the Musicians. It is of meridional Gothic with bricks, been the biggest in the world on bricks, and inside has the biggest concentration of Italian paintings in France!. The Cathedral is 114 meters long  (373 feet) by 35 meters wide (116 feet)  and 40 meters high (132 feet); the bell tower are at 78 meters (257 feet). The entrance on the side of the nave and not by the gate of entrance under the clock tower for lack of space. The Cathedral was restored in the 19C, The largest wall painting of the last judgment in the world, the largest set of Renaissance painting in France and the largest classic organ in France

The official Cathédrale Sainte Cécile of Albi : https://cathedrale-albi.com/visiter/

The Albi tourist office on the cathedral : https://www.albi-tourisme.fr/en/decouvrir-albi/patrimoine-unesco/la-cathedrale-sainte-cecile/

The city of Albi on the Cathedral Sainte Cécile: https://albi.fr/patrimoine-mondial/la-cathedrale-sainte-cecile

This is beyond words really, again, a must to see come here , the Sainte Cécile Cathedral ,the country in my deep France gets you to know the real story and the real people, with wonderful monuments of history and architecture. One of the reason I say to Mr Hemingway, France is a moveable feast! Again, hope you enjoy this post on the Cathédrale Sainte Cécile of Albi , part II as I.

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!