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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The chapel Saint-Lambert de Sentelie is a 16th-century religious building, located in the communal cemetery of Sentelie, in the department of the Somme (Hauts-de-France). Built in stone in the flamboyant Gothic style, it is distinguished by its characteristic fenestration, its basket handle portal, and a three-sided apse. Originally, it was a place of pilgrimage for the infirm, as witnessed by the ex-voto (suspended shells) formerly present near the altar.

The chapel was listed as historical monuments by order of 18 May 1926. It also plays a commemorative role for the First World War, sheltering a plaque in memory of the victims of the commune, in the absence of a dedicated memorial to the dead. Its interior, divided into nave and choir by a wood fence, houses a master altar and a tabernacle of Louis XIII style, classified in turn as historical objects.

The architecture of the chapel reveals remarkable details, such as the ten blocks carved of human heads on the sandstone, or the campenard adorning the gable. These elements, combined with its history of pilgrimage and collective memory, make it an emblematic heritage of Picardia, linked to both religious devotion and local history.

Owned by the municipality of Sentelie, the chapel is today a testimony to both late Gothic art and the upheavals of the twentieth century. Its location in the cemetery, as well as its commemorative role, underline its anchoring in community life, past and present.

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