Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: Danse Macabre

Atri was known as Hadria, when the Romans founded a colony here in 282BC. Actually Roman emperor Hadrian's family originally derived from this place. After the fall of the Roman Imperium, the Lombards established hegemony over the area in the 6th century and Atri got annexed to the Duchy of Spoleto. The Lombards were displaced by the Normans, whose noble House of Acquaviva family ruled the town from about 1393, before merging their lands into the Kingdom of Naples in 1757. The present cathedral has several predecessor buildings, that were founded in the ruins of a Roman thermal from the 2nd century. It was consecrated in 1223. Reconstructions occurred during the following two centuries. The sober white stone façade has a large portal designed by Raimondo del Poggio and Rainaldo d'Atri between 1288 and 1305. The interior of the cathedral was once covered with frescoes. Some were rediscovered in the 19th and 20th centuries under a thick layer of plaster. From the 13th century comes "The Meeting of the Three Living and the Three Dead." The story goes back to a legend that tells how three noblemen meet three dead while hunting. The living are on the right (with horses and servants). On the left side are the dead. Two skeletons are standing, the third is just coming out of the coffin. The motif is a "Memento Mori", which found its climax in the many "Danse Macabre" (Dance of Death) in the times of the plague.

The fortified parish church of Metnitz, first mentioned in 1121, is best known for its Karner (ossuary) - and the Totentanz (= "Dance of Death", "Danse Macabre"), a fresco that runs all around the octagonal building. The frescoes were done around 1500. In 1970 the original frescoes were removed from the wall and are now save in the local "Totentanzmuseum", next to the church. Since 1989 copies of the originals are seen around the Karner.

The fortified parish church of Metnitz, first mentioned in 1121, is best known for its Karner (ossuary) - and the Totentanz (= "Dance of Death", "Danse Macabre"), a fresco that runs all around the octagonal building. The frescoes were done around 1500. In 1970 the original frescoes were removed from the wall and are now save in the local "Totentanzmuseum", next to the church. Since 1989 copies of the originals are seen around the Karner.

The fortified parish church of Metnitz, first mentioned in 1121, is best known for its Karner (ossuary) - and the Totentanz (= "Dance of Death", "Danse Macabre"), a fresco that runs all around the octagonal building. The frescoes were done around 1500. In 1970 the original frescoes were removed from the wall and are now save in the local "Totentanzmuseum", next to the church. Since 1989 here are copies of the originals.

The fortified parish church of Metnitz, first mentioned in 1121, is best known for its Karner (ossuary) - and the Totentanz (= "Dance of Death", "Danse Macabre"), a fresco that runs all around the octagonal building. The frescoes were done around 1500. In 1970 the original frescoes were removed from the wall and are now save in the local "Totentanzmuseum", next to the church. Since 1989 here are copies of the originals.

Monks from Moissac, who had fled the Normans, built up the monastery in Marcilhac-sur-Célé in the early 9th century. The abbey gained importance and was pretty wealthy. Even the church of Rocamadour was transferred to the abbey from the Bishop of Cahors. After monks from Tulle had discovered the body of legendary Saint Amadour in Rocamadour in 1166, what triggered a profitable pilgrimage, a lawsuit between Marcilhac and Tulle started. The controversy got finally settled in 1193, when the abbey in Tulle accepted a hefty compensation. The decline started, when English troops sacked and ruined the abbey during the Hundred Years War. Most of what was rebuilt and reconstructed after that got burnt down by Protestants during the Wars of Religion. The abbey did not really recover, but existed upto the French Revolution. The former abbey church meanwhile serves the parish, but is much smaller than it was once, as the western part of the nave is in ruins. The chapterhouse is the only still existing structure of the convent buildings. Here are still some interesting capitals. The left one has an inscription LITICIA, what is probably Laeticia = Joy. I have no idea, what the person is holding. Moses and the tablets of law? To the right devils torture the poor souls. A "Danse Macabre".