On the road to Mallefougasse, the Saint-Donat Chapel is characteristic of early Provençal Romanesque art. This Romanesque church with its refined architecture is one of the oldest in France and one of the oldest medieval buildings in Haute Provence.
Description
You can see it around a bend, when you go to Châteauneuf Val Saint-Donat or Mallefougasse. Built on a hill, in a wild site, it stands out with the balance of its volumes and the majesty of its lines.
It was built around the year 1040 and presents all the characteristics of the constructions of the first southern Romanesque art.
This church is a witness to the oldest medieval architecture, which has no equivalent in all of Provence.
It is a church with a basilica plan, formed by a large, high nave flanked by narrow side aisles and a low transept opening onto three apses.
It is built of roughly squared rubble, where only the arches, the jambs and the corner chains are carefully fitted.
Long used as a sheepfold and a dwelling, it was ready to collapse when, in 1970, a Conservation Committee undertook its restoration under the supervision of the Historic Monuments. The work was completed in the 1980s. This building is listed as a Historic Monument.
Rates / opening
Prices
Free access.
Opening
All year, every day.