Rots - Saint-Ouen

The parish church of the small village Rots was a dependency of the abbey Abbaye Saint-Ouen de Rouen, founded by the merovingian nobility in the 7th century, in medieval times.

The nave dates back to the 12th century, while the Gothic transept and the choir are younger. The structure of church, situated in the center of the graveyard, suffered severely by a "reconstruction" of the late 19th century, when large parts were just rebuilt, and the devastation during the Battle of Normandy (1944), when the church was hit by shells.

The sides of the Romanesque is flanked by blind arches, what is pretty unique and has many carvings. Here is one of them.

On the right side is a bishop (or abbot) in a blessing (or greeting) gesture. To the left were two persons once. One with a long braid (?) is still complete, while only the feet and an arm holding a hammer are left from the second. The scene may be connected to the martyrdom of Saint Quentin.