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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Villacerf, located in the Aube department in the Grand Est region, is a building whose origins date back to the late twelfth century. It was originally built under the name of John the Baptist, and was then thoroughly redesigned in the 16th century. The modifications include the addition of two spans on each side, forming a transept, as well as two side chapels. These transformations gave him his current plan in Latin cross, with an apse arched in cul-de-four and a square bell tower on one floor, pierced with eight windows.

Originally, the church depended on the Grand Dean of Troyes and was under the snack of the priory of Saint-Sepulcre de Villacerf since 1114. In 1791, during the French Revolution, the relics of Saint Aderald and other sacred objects were transferred from the church of the Priory of the Holy Sepulchre to the parish church to protect them from damage. Despite this precaution, the relics underwent desecrations and were finally locked in a vault walled in 1802. A memorial was erected in honour of Saint Aderald, described in 1865 as a candle decorated with a crown, symbolizing his priestly virtues.

The church houses rich and varied furniture, including several classified elements. These include 16th-century statues, such as a Saint John the Baptist in polychrome limestone, a Virgin of Pitié, or a Saint Barbe. The octagonal baptismal fonts, also of the sixteenth century, as well as stained glass windows of the same period, testify to the artistic richness of the building. The seventeenth century left a sculpture of Christ on the cross, a white marble bentier and a pulpit to preach in painted oak. Finally, an 18th-century altarpiece, now placed in the north transept, carries a painting depicting a Virgin to the Child with Saint Elizabeth and Saint John the Baptist.

The building was listed as historic monuments in 1986, recognizing its heritage importance. His history is also marked by missing or displaced elements, such as the funeral slab of Jean de Villacerf († 1324) and his wife, now preserved at the Musée Saint-Loup de Troyes, or a monumental painting covered with lime. These traces of the past highlight the evolution and transformations suffered by the church over the centuries.

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