Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The chapel Saint-Laurent de Veigné, located in a wooded valley north of the commune, is a religious building marked by a double period of major construction: a first Romanesque phase between the middle of the 11th and the beginning of the 12th century, followed by partial reconstruction in the Renaissance (early 16th century). Its walls preserve traces of an exceptional fresco of Christ in glory (circa 1170-1180), as well as small masonries typical of the Romanesque era. The semi-oval, cul-de-four vaulted nave and the non-vouched nave illustrate this overlay of styles.

According to a local tradition, a first oratory was erected in the fourth century by Martin de Tours to Christianize a pagan cult linked to a nearby source, although this hypothesis is based on an inscription today illegible. The chapel, dependent on the abbey of Notre-Dame de Beaumont-lès-Tours in the 13th century, underwent multiple changes, including an elevation of the gables and the renovation of the roof in the 20th century (the 1960s). Its west-facing basket handle portal and bell tower-wall reflect these successive transformations.

Classified as a historical monument in 1973, the chapel also houses fragmentary frescoes, including a representation of two saints surrounding the axial bay of l'Abside. The Romanesque bays, partially walled during reconstructions, and traces of murals in the nave testify to its architectural and liturgical evolution. Its geographical isolation, at the communal limit with Chambray-lès-Tours, reinforces its mysterious character, linked to local legends and a well-known healing source.

Archaeological studies (especially in 2013) confirmed the complexity of its chronology, mixing Romanesque elements (abside, masonry), Gothic (carpent) and reborn (reconstructed nave). The chapel, though modest by its size, offers a rare example of historical stratification in Touraine, where the Martinian heritage, Romanesque art and post-medieval adaptations intersect.

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