Gothic portal of the Monolithic Church of Saint-Emilion, medieval village in the heart of the Bordeaux wine area in the Gironde department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France. The church was dug out of surrounding limestone rock in the 1100s.
Saint-Emilion, Gironde department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France: Gothic portal and base of bell tower of the Monolithic Church, which derives its name from the Greek word ‘mono’ meaning ‘single’ and ‘lithos’ meaning ‘stone’. It is one of the largest underground churches in Europe, dug out of the surrounding limestone rock in the 1100s. The church was painted in the 1300s, devastated in the 1500s, damaged during the 1700s and the French Revolution and then restored in the 1900s. The portal has images sculpted in the 1300s which depict the Last Judgement and the Resurrection. Saint-Emilion is a medieval village in the heart of the Bordeaux wine area. In the 700s AD, according to legend, a monk called Aemilanus (Emilion) fled from Brittany to seek refuge in a cave in a place called Ascum bas (the former name of the village of Saint-Emilion); he lived the life of a hermit and performed some miracles and after his death his followers called the village after him. In the medieval period, the Saint-Emilion area benefited from its location on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela and many churches, monasteries and hospices were built there from the 1000s onwards. The Romans introduced viticulture to the area and the industry developed further during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The Jurisdiction of Saint-Emilion, covering Saint-Emilion and the seven villages that surround it and their vineyards, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Size: 2832px × 4256px
Location: Monolithic Church, Saint-Emilion, Gironde department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, France
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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