Eglise romane de Saint-Didier-de-Charpey
Address
Hameau de Saint-Didier
26300 CHARPEY
Contact
Languages spoken
- French
Hameau de Saint-Didier
26300 CHARPEY
In the 12th century, the church of Saint-Didier-de-Charpey belonged to the Benedictines of Lyon, before becoming a dependency of Léoncel.
Interior access reserved for worship.
Built of molasse and tufa, its facade dates from the 12th century, with a single double-arched portal. Comprising a single long nave, it was divided into six bays. To the west, two bays were destroyed to create a choir bay flanked by two chapels.
Cited in 1100, the Romanesque church of Saint-Didier-de-Charpey belonged in the Middle Ages to the Benedictine monastery of Ile-Barbe in Lyon.
The façade is laid out on two levels. The first level, bordered by a cornice supported by modillions, features a double-arched portain decorated with an archivolt scroll. On the upper level, two semicircular bays, now closed, inscribe a small window pierced at a later date. The crowning and the rear part of the gable are modern.
Inside, the nave's gutter walls are punctuated by pilasters and reinforced by relieving arches. The barrel vault is supported by double arches cushioned by whistle-shaped caps, a device reminiscent of a Cistercian tradition found at Léoncel, for example. The eastern parts of the building have been extensively altered, and the chevet is modern. Two decorations, treated in low relief, have been replaced in the jambs of the triumphal arch. The stone used in the lower sections is molasse; the less dense tuff rubble was used for the vaulting of the nave. This method is used in other Dauphiné churches, such as Marnans.