Construction of the cross 1537 (≈ 1537)
Date and registration of sponsor.
1824
Old cadastre certificate
Old cadastre certificate 1824 (≈ 1824)
Location unchanged since that date.
16 mai 1972
Historical Monument
Historical Monument 16 mai 1972 (≈ 1972)
Registration by ministerial decree.
1998
Restoration and winding
Restoration and winding 1998 (≈ 1998)
Works by the Conte workshops.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Cross located in the square (no CADASTRE box; PUBLIC AREA): registration by order of 16 May 1972
Key figures
P. Alamán L. - Suspected Sponsor
Name engraved on the base (unknown role).
Saint Jean-Baptiste - Holy patron represented
Sculpture of the barrel.
Origin and history
The cross of La Tourette, erected in the 2nd quarter of the 16th century, is a historic stoneware monument located in the central square of the village. Its architecture is distinguished by a square base surmounted by an octagonal plinth, connected to a conical barrel slender by a carved tore. The barrel, adorned with a ribbon in bas-relief, culminates with a representation in high relief of Saint John the Baptist, patron of the local prioral church. An inscription engraved on the basis mentions the sponsor P. Alamán L., whose identity and function remain unknown to date.
The cross, dated precisely from 1537, is attested to its present location as early as the cadastre of 1824, confirming its historical anchoring in the communal landscape. Classified as a Historical Monument by order of 16 May 1972, it was completely restored in 1998 by the Conte workshops before being resettled in the square. Owned by the commune, this cross illustrates both the funeral art of the Renaissance and the local devotion to Saint John the Baptist, a spiritual link with the nearby Prioral Church.
The style of the cross, marked by late Gothic elements (freed at the angles, was slender) and Renaissance details (sculpted ruban, harmonious proportion), reflects a period of artistic transition. His iconography, centered on Saint John the Baptist, emphasizes the importance of Marian and Baptist worship in the region, while his location on the public square makes him a major community landmark, as evidenced by his unchanged presence for nearly five centuries.
