Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Saint-Martin de Haux church, located in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, is a composite building dating back to the 11th century. The rectangular nave, the oldest part, has irregular stone walls reinforced with flat buttresses, typical of this period. The bedside, rebuilt in the 12th century, has a vaulted choir in a cradle and a cul-de-four apse, while the axial window retains its Romanesque appearance. The portal, one of Gironde's most elaborate, is decorated with more than 150 sculpted subjects, including scenes of Christ's life and yousures illustrating apocalyptic and agricultural themes. This portal, made with a single jet, is inspired by that of the Abbey of Sainte-Croix in Bordeaux.

In the 15th century, a bell tower-wall was erected, leaning on two foothills which partially masked the Romanesque facade. The north side is added at the end of the seventeenth century. The church is partially classified as a Historical Monument in 1925 (registration) and 1953 (classification of the gate and the western facade). The western facade, although partially hidden by later added foothills, remains an exceptional testimony of girondin Romanesque art, with its historic capitals and richly decorated vestments.

The sculptures inlaid in the foothills and the facade come in part from the ruins of the abbey of La Sauve-Majure, brought in the 18th century by Jean-Baptiste Castel, the first constitutional priest of Haux and former monk of this abbey. These elements, including arch keys representing biblical scenes such as the Nativity or the Adoration of the Magi, add an additional historical and artistic dimension to the building. Inside, the Romanesque capitals of the sanctuary and the abside illustrate various themes, ranging from animal scenes to warnings against fleshly temptations, reflecting the religious and moral concerns of the time.

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