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Origin and history

The chapel Saint-Sébastien de Coaraze is a Catholic building built around 1530, located in the department of Alpes-Maritimes, in the municipality of Coaraze, 1.5 km from the village. It is located along an ancient mule road linking Nice to the Vesubia valley, a major historical axis for trade and travel in Nice County. Like many chapels in the region, it was erected at the entrance of the villages to protect the inhabitants from plague outbreaks, a recurrent threat in modern times. Its simple architecture, from rectangular to flat bedside, reflects its utilitarian and devotional role.

The chapel is decorated with 16th century murals, attributed to an anonymous artist attached to the Nice primitive painters. These frescoes, performed in half-fresco, depict scenes of the martyrdom of Saint Sebastian (the saint pierced with arrows, surrounded by d'archers in Renaissance costumes) as well as figures of Saint Ursula and Lucie on the bedside. The broken cradle vault features a mandorle with God the Father, surrounded by Renaissance trompe-l'oeil motifs (caissons, rinceaux, palmettes). Two panels of the south wall, spared by a badigeon applied in 1914, illustrate episodes of the legend of the saint: the transport and burial of his body.

Saint Sebastian, especially venerated in Nice County, was invoked against the plague but also to protect domestic and agricultural work, essential for the survival of rural communities. The chapel, restored at the beginning of the twentieth century, was classified as a historical monument on 21 February 2001 for the rarity of its decorations and their testimony on local religious art. The paintings, though partially altered, offer a remarkable example of Italian influence in the region, mixing Christian symbolism and Renaissance aesthetics.

Historical sources, such as Paul Roque's or Germaine-Pierre Leclerc's works, point to his belonging to a network of Nice votive chapels, often located on roads. These buildings, modest in size, played a key social and spiritual role, marking the boundaries of villages and serving as gathering points during processions or epidemics. Their iconography, centered on the patron saints, reflected the fears and hopes of the rural populations of modern times.

The site is now owned by the municipality of Coaraze and remains a valuable testimony of sacred art and popular piety in the Alpes-Maritimes. The frescoes, although partially erased, continue to attract attention for their naive style and documentary value, illustrating local devotion and cultural exchanges between Nice and neighbouring Italy in the 16th century.

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