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Origin and history

The Basilica Notre-Dame de la Couture de Bernay is a minor Catholic basilica located in the municipality of Bernay, Normandy. According to a local legend, a sheep found a statuette of the Virgin in a hamlet called La Couture (meaning "culture" in former French). This miraculous discovery would have initiated a pilgrimage, leading to the construction of a chapel in the 13th century, then a church rebuilt in the 14th and 15th centuries, before being enlarged in the 16th century.

The building was erected as a minor basilica in 1950 by Pope Pius XII, on the recommendation of Nuncio Angelo Roncalli, future Pope John XXIII. It is the only basilica in the Diocese of Evreux (corresponding to the Department of Eure) and hosts each year, on Pentecost, the charitable brotherhoods of the Diocese on pilgrimage. His organ, built in 1880 by the Rouenian factor Hubert Krischer, counts 21 games and was restored in 2007 by Denis Lacorre.

Classified as a Historical Monument by order of 30 March 1906, the basilica is now owned by the municipality of Bernay. Its architecture and history make it a major religious and cultural heritage of Normandy, marked by centuries of Marian devotion and sacred art.

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