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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The chapel San Quilico de Montilati, located near Figari in Corsica, is a 12th century religious building, classified as a Historical Monument since 1977. It is distinguished by its elongated plane, composed of a single nave vaulted in the middle of the skin and a semicircular apse covered with a cul-de-four. Unlike most Corsican chapels, it does not have an apparent structure, but a stone vault, and has retained its original teghie roof (shale lauzes), a traditional local material. Its western entrance, devoid of lintel or tympanum, is surmounted by an arc in the middle of which the curve reaches almost the dot of the pediment, emphasized by ground bands.

According to oral tradition, this chapel would have been a seigneurial foundation linked to Orso la Mano, a small local lord of the 12th century. L-abside, illuminated by a deadly window with bare lintel, and the absence of carved decoration suggest a sober construction, perhaps intended for a rural community or seigneurial estate. The Napoleonic cadastre of 1884 already mentions it as ruined, indicating an early decline, although its structure survived until its official protection in the 20th century. The materials used, such as yellow granite for the nave, reflect local resources and Romanesque construction techniques adapted to the island context.

The chapel illustrates medieval Corsican religious architecture, marked by simplicity of forms and integration into the landscape. Its ranking in 1977 preserved a rare testimony of Romanesque buildings on the island, often modified or destroyed over the centuries. The teghie roof, the vault in the heart and the absence of a frame make it a unique example in Corsica, where the chapels are more commonly covered with wood. Its geographical isolation, near the hamlet of Montilati, reinforces its heritage character, linked to the feudal and agricultural history of the region.

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