Église du prieuré Saint-Germain de La Celle

English translation

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History

The parish church of Saint-Germain de La Celle-Condé was built in the Romanesque period. In 1229, the church, placed under the patronage of the Benedictine abbey of Massay, was the seat of a priory. It consists of a nave with a single vessel, extended by a choir with flat chevet. Choir and nave are covered by a wainscoted roof structure with broken barrel vault. This very modest building has the interest of retaining on the north and south walls of the nave, as well as on the entrance arch of the choir, wall paintings still partly covered by whitewash. On the north wall, one can distinguish a series of five or six scenes painted in the 12th century, among which the struggle of a sainted figure against the Devil or the healing of a demoniac, a group of three angels (evocation of the Trinity or representations of Virtues?), the Meeting on the Road to Emmaus followed by the Meal at Emmaus. The diaphragm arch bears the vestiges of a Crucifixion belonging to the same campaign. Still on the north wall of the nave, to the west of this ensemble, is painted the image of a couple of recumbent figures whose souls are led to Paradise by angels and which was doubtless accompanied by an epitaph. This decoration was executed at the end of the 13th century or the beginning of the 14th century.