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Origin and history

The church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste in Saint-Jean-le-Vieux, located in the Isère department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, is a Romanesque religious building dating from the 11th century. It is considered one of the oldest examples of Romanesque architecture in the department, with a Lombardic facade characteristic of the early Romanesque period. Its 17th-century high altar, nicknamed "mysterious altarpiece", is decorated with gold leaves, lily flowers and torso columns, while the choir preserves 18th-century wall paintings imitating marble. The church was initially linked to a cloister and crypt, as evidenced by a side door with a braid and a semi-entered trilobed window.

The building was handed over to the Clunisian Priory of Domène by Saint Hugues, Bishop of Grenoble, at the end of the 11th century under the name of Sancti Johannis super Domena. In the 17th century, it became a place of pilgrimage thanks to its relics of Saint John the Baptist and Saint John the Evangelist. Closed during the French Revolution, she found a resident priest only in 1877, the year when the sacristy was rearranged. Architectural changes, such as the roof of the abside and the addition of the southern sacristy, date back to the 19th century. The church was listed as historical monuments on 8 June 2024.

The parish church, owned by the commune, is now part of the parish of La Croix de Belledonne within the diocese of Grenoble. Its history reflects the cultural and architectural evolutions of the region, from its medieval origin to its recent heritage protection. The pastoral visits of the eighteenth century describe a generally well preserved building, despite dilapidated slate covers, and mention two internal chapels dedicated to Saint Sebastian and the Holy Cross.

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