Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: money bag

Saint-Nazaire was erected in the 12th century. The single nave church has a very elaborate southern portal. The interior is pretty simple, the nave may have been vaulted once. There are still some nice capitals. Here is a miser, carrying his money bag. He is attacked by two horrible devils.

Around 1060 a small monastery was founded here, funded by William IV, Duke of Aquitaine (aka Fièrebrace - The Iron Arm). The building of the romanesque church started immediately and probably only took less than 10 years. This church is counted rightly to the crown jewels of the romanesque architecture in the Auvergne by Bernard Craplet ("Auverne romane"). What makes it so interesting is, that this is the oldest of the crown jewels, as this structure is about 50 years older than Notre-Dame-du-Port, Orcival and Issoire. But it nevertheless shows already all the specific touch, the romanesque style ahs in the Auvergne. Actually Bernard Craplet places this small church like a stepping stone between the (lost) romanesque cathedral of Étienne II/Pope Stephen II in Clermont and Notre-Dame-du-Port. Though the romanesque church is really small and not complete, this is one of the most important structures in the Auvergne. The Collégiale Saint-Victor et Sainte-Couronne (now parish church) consists out of three architectural parts. The romanesque church with a nave, two aisles and a transept, a later added narthex and a large gothic part. The building of the gothic church from around 1280 on, took about 200 years. There are many carved capitals in the romanesque nave. This the best known - in literature. The "Rich Man" (or even "Avarice") showcased by two large, winged devils, holding him by his hands and his feet. He is on his way to hell. The money bag is still around the neck and down below between his knees stands a vessel. Probably an early saving box. "MUNERA DIVE" is written on the vessel. While the sinner faces the audience directly, the two devils obviously pan a wider space. The speech scroll is holded on the left by a small devil on the side (only the facial profil and a hand can be seen here) and written by another one on the right (not to be seen here)(Sorry!) - reads "CANDO USURAM ACCEPISTSI OPERA MEA FECISTI" - well, a rough translation is "(When you) accepted usury, you worked for me". This describes clearly - Mark 10:25 / Matthew 19:24 "..it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”

"Saint-Pierre d'Aulnay" is a church outside of Aulnay, in the center of an old graveyard. The setting has not changed for centuries. For the pilgrims of the 12th century this church was a major halt - and it still is for all the tourists... A predecessing church „Saint-Pierre-de-la-Tour“ had been here, that, when the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostella got more and more popular, was obviously too small, as Aulnay was conveniently situated between Poitiers and Saintes on the Via Turonensis. A new, larger church was needed, so the place was handed over to the chapter of the cathedral in Poitiers. The canons then probably planned this church, that was erected from about 1130/1140 on. "Saint-Pierre d'Aulnay" (here seen from east) is a gem of the "style saintongeais". For Peter Strafford ("Romanesque Churches Of France") this is "one of the best examples of late Romanesque architecture in what used to be Aquitaine". - A miser, money bag around his neck, gets devoured simultaneously (and symmetrically) by four devils. - I have uploaded many photos already taken during previous visits. So I will now add only a few.

The village Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges, named after a bishop of the once existing diocese here,was just like neighbouring Valcabrère once part of a large Roman settlement, that may have had about 30.000 inhabitants. In the early 5th century the Vandals sacked the city, in 585 merovingian troops razed the site, that probably had the bishopric seat already at that time. Saint Bertrand of Comminges (1073–1123) restored and fortified the town. He commissioned the erection of the cathedral. Saint Bertrand´s tomb was a center of regional pilgrimage already before he got canonized around 1220. Pope Clement V, who had once been Bishop of this diocese, strongly promoted the pilgrimage, so that soon after the Romanesque church was to small for the many "pelerins". Between 1304 and 1352 the major part of old nave got demolished to make room for a new, larger Gothic nave. In 1586, during the Wars of Religion, the cathedral was looted and severely damaged by the Huguenot troops. It took the next centuries to restore and repair. Saint-Bertrand´s relics were hidden during the Huguenot raids and are meanwhile back in the cathedral. One of the capitals of the portal depicts this a miser, money bag around around his neck. He gets stuffed into the hellmouth by devils unsing long forks. Animals (an eagle (left), a dog (right)) have started to maul the miser. More infos can be found at the cathedral´s website: www.cathedrale-saint-bertrand.org/