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Origin and history

The chapel Saint-Mamert, located in the Côtes-d'Arey in the department of Isère, is a 11th or 12th century religious building built on the pilgrimage path of the "Chemin de Saint Oyand". It belonged to the Clunisian order as early as the tenth century and was the last vestige of a priory certified in 1055. Dedicated to Saint Mamert, bishop of Vienna in the fifth century, it served as a parish church before becoming a rural chapel after the Revolution.

The architecture of the chapel consists of a unique nave once covered with frame, extended by a vaulted choir in cul-de-four. A bell tower overlooks the entrance, and the building rests on a rocky promontory. In the 17th century, modifications were made: construction of a terrace and a retaining wall, addition of a ceiling with caissons in the nave, and decoration of the choir with paintings and a communion table.

After a post-revolutionary decline, the chapel was saved from 1972 by the association "La Famille" and the commune. It was listed in the Historical Monuments in 1974, as was its retaining wall. Two furniture elements were also protected: an 18th-century sacristy furniture (1976) and a 16th-century crucifixion painting (1992).

The chapel illustrates the Romanesque architecture and the influence of the order of Cluny in Dauphiné. Its history also reflects the transformation of places of worship, from a priori church to a rural chapel, while maintaining its role in the local religious landscape.

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