Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: Gascogne

Marciac has its fame from the annual Jazz Festival, that was going on, when I reached the small town - and decided to stay for two days. The interior of the late gothic "Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption" was quiet and uncrowded. The church was erected in the 15th century, but some older, Romanesque carvings got reused here. Under the power line is this mermaid, holding a comb and a mirror. So she stands for vanity, a symbol that can often be found in gothic churches.

The cathedral was erected on the foundations of a Romanesque cathedral. The building process started with the crypt and the apses in 1489. It took two centuries to complete it. The large cathedral (102 meters long) is known for the choir stalls, seen here. The carvers started around 1510 and it took about 40 years to complete the stalls, covered with more than 1500 different scenes and figures. Here is one of the scenes. Two monkeys tie up a fat, naked monk.