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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The chapel of Lugaut, located in the eponymous area of Retjons (Landes), is a former desacralized Catholic place of worship, classified as a historical monument in 1964 for its choir and murals. Built between the 11th and 12th centuries on the right bank of Bourriot Creek, it was a stop on the limousine route of the Santiago de Compostela pilgrimage. Its origin remains linked to a sacred wood (luc in gascon, from the Latin lucus), and its history is marked by possible links with the order of St John of Jerusalem, as evidenced by a fresco depicting Amanieu V of Albret (died 1240) offering the church to the Hospitallers.

The interior frescoes, dated from the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, constitute a treasure of Clunisian Romanesque art, mixing Italian-Byzantine influences. They illustrate evangelical scenes (Nativity, Resurrection), moral allegories (vertus/vices), and symbolic motifs (chimers, lamb of God). The building, looted and burned in 1569 by the Huguenots of Montgomery, was partially rebuilt: the nave, in re-use, became less broad and lower, while the choir, made of cut stone, survived almost intact. In the 18th century, modifications (stuctures, transformation of windows, addition of a sacristy) and a bell tower-wall erected in 1783 altered its appearance.

Abandoned in the 19th century and disused in 1896, the chapel served as a stable before being rediscovered in the 1960s by Marcel Labidalle, teacher at Retjons. The paintings, masked by bandages, were uncovered, triggering a backup campaign. The association Les Amis de Lugaut, founded in 1982, allowed its rehabilitation with public and private funds. Nearby, the Devil's Stone, or Hand of the Devil — a block of sandstone engraved with five lines — feeds a local legend linked to divine intervention.

The chapel today embodies a rare medieval heritage, bearing witness to cultural exchanges between Cluny, Byzantium and Aquitaine. Its unique wall decor offers an overview of the artistic and religious practices of the Middle Ages, while its history reflects the tumults of the Wars of Religion and the challenges of preservation of the twentieth century.

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