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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The chapel Saint-Pierre, known as Viviers, is a Romanesque chapel located in the hamlet of Saint-Pierre in Pierrerue, in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. Excavations revealed graves of the 6th and 8th centuries around the site, attesting to an ancient occupation. The first known building was a priory built in the 11th century, dependent on the abbey of Ganagobia, but the present chapel dates from the 12th and 13th centuries, according to the DRAC.

The history of the chapel is marked by property changes. Given in 967 by the bishop Bears to the priory of Ganagobie, it was then usurped by knights before being ceded to Cluny in 1019 by Tassilo. It passes under the control of the chapter of Forcalquier in the early 12th century, then of the bishop of Sisteron before returning to Ganagobia in the 15th century. A papal bubble from Adrien IV in 1155 mentions the chapel for the first time.

The chapel, in ruins, was listed as a historical monument in 1984. It was restored between 1986 and 1993 thanks to the association Alpes de Lumières and La renaissance de Pierrerue. A new restoration campaign is planned in 2021, supported by the Heritage Foundation.

From an architectural point of view, the chapel consists of a nave and a semicircular bedside surmounted by a bell tower. The oldest elements, such as the choir, the abside and its absidioles, are built in rubble, with stones of size reserved for bays and bell tower. The bedside has a narrow window framed by primitive columnettes, probably from a re-use, adorned with a frieze of gear teeth.

The western facade, sober, is marked by an ogival door and an egg-eye. These features illustrate the Provencal Romanesque style, combining simplicity and decorative elements inherited from earlier periods.

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