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Origin and history

The chapel of the White Penitents of Vence is a religious building built in the 1st quarter of the 17th century, located in the commune of Vence (Alpes-Maritimes). This monument, classified by ministerial decree on 20 January 1944, illustrates the architecture devolved to the brotherhoods of penitents, very active in Provence at that time. Its official address, recorded in the Mérimée base, is Avenue Foch / avenue Henri-Isnard, although GPS coordinates suggest a location at 39 Passage des Penitents Blancs. The property today belongs to the municipality of Vence.

The brotherhoods of penitents, which appeared in the Middle Ages and flourished in the 16th–15th centuries, played a major social and spiritual role in the Provençal cities. These lay groups, often organized by dress color (white, black, grey...), devoted themselves to charitable works, accompaniment of dying people and penitential processes. The chapel of Vence, by its classification as Historic Monument, bears witness to the heritage importance of these places of collective devotion, marked by an architectural sobriety reflecting their humble and contemplative vocation.

The building is mentioned in Monumentum sources and the internal data of the Merimée database, with a location accuracy estimated at 6/10 (a priori satisfactory). A photo licensed under Creative Commons, credited to Dchauvinfr, documents its current appearance. No information is available on its accessibility to the public, possible space rental or contemporary uses such as guest rooms.

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