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Origin and history

The chapel Notre-Dame-de-Manéguen is located at the place called Manéguen, in the commune of Guénin, in the department of Morbihan (Bretagne). Built between the 16th and 18th centuries, it is distinguished by its Latin cross plan, its granite and shale materials, and its Cornouaillais bell tower. The building is surrounded by a square and a fence wall, classified as historical monuments since 1963, while the adjacent fountain is listed on the same date. An architectural peculiarity lies in the elevation between the nave and the south arm of the transept, as well as in the walled frame dated 1577 and 1604.

The chapel bears the traces of several construction and renovation campaigns. The nave, adorned with a carved sandstone signed by the carpenters Guil and Jacques Les Thébaut (1577), is extended by a transept with asymmetrical arms, whose south arm, rebuilt in the 19th century, retains an inscription of 1604 mentioning M. O. Bigoin and CN Le Touvel, hermit. The choir and the polygonal sacristy, rebuilt before 1751, displayed the coats of arms of the local noble families (Rimaison, Rohan, Martel, Kerveno), reflecting their patronage. Close by, a well dated 1715 completes the whole.

The site also includes the stone of sacrifice, a block of granite carved from cavities, associated with pagan and Christian legends. According to local beliefs, this megalith, located west of the chapel, was used for sacrificial rituals before being Christianized. The chapel is thus part of a landscape marked by the superposition of pre-Christian traditions and Marian devotions, typical of rural Brittany.

Ranked a historic monument in 1963, the chapel Notre-Dame-de-Manéguen illustrates the Breton religious architecture of the Renaissance and modern times, mixing noble influences (savants, coats of arms) and local crafts (dated carpents, raw materials). Its enclosure, dated from the 1720s, and its fountain underline its central role in the community and spiritual life of Guenin, between pilgrimages and parish gatherings.

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