Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The chapel Saint-Joseph de Peumerit, located in the commune of Peumérit in Brittany, was founded in 1649 by the lords of Rubien. This church building, rectangular and with a single vessel, illustrates the modest architecture of the 17th century Breton chapels. Its western gable wall is surmounted by a bell tower, a characteristic element of the local landscape. Sold as a national good in 1795 during the Revolution, it was then ceded to the Fabrique in 1816, marking its return to the ecclesiastical giron.

In 1917, the chapel was restored, later revealing, in 1981, a painted decoration hidden under the coat. These paintings, executed in the wet, date for part from the seventeenth century and for a figure of the bedside, potentially from the sixteenth century. They combine decorative bands, traditional Breton inscriptions, and an enigmatic character. The present building, probably rebuilt in the late eighteenth century, replaces a destroyed first building. The chapel was once the starting point of a procession leading to a fountain, linked to the forgiveness of Saint Joseph, a religious practice rooted in local culture.

Classified as a Historical Monument by decree of 21 December 1984, the chapel now belongs to the commune. His placister (parochial enclosure) and his popular paintings make it a rare testimony of Breton religious art. The decors, naively inspired, reflect the beliefs and craftsmanship of the time, while its turbulent history — between revolutionary spoliation and modern safeguard — embodies the social and political upheavals of Brittany.

External links