church of Saint Martin à Orignac dans les Hautes-Pyrénées

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Origin and history

Saint Martin d'Orignac Church is a Catholic building located in the Hautes-Pyrénées, in the Occitan region. Built probably between the 15th and 16th centuries, it is distinguished by its rectangular nave, its two side chapels and its choir with cut strips. Its bell tower, a high square tower surmounted by a five-bell roof, is attached to the west gable. The building is built on a hill, in the center of a circular enclosure that suggests the existence of a medieval defensive site of the 12th and 13th centuries.

At the end of the 18th century, the church underwent major changes. In 1785 his frame was redone, and a false wooden vault was decorated with paintings depicting the Virgin, God the Father, Christ, and Saint Michael and Saint John the Baptist. The furniture, entrusted to the Baroque sculptors Ferrère d'Asté, enriched in 1792 the exceptional transfer of the altar, the tabernacle and the baldaquin of the chapel of the Capuchins of Médous, near Bagneres-de-Bigorre, closed during the Revolution. This ensemble, directed by Marc and Dominique Ferrère, is among the most remarkable in the region.

The church is listed as historical monuments in November 2018. Since 2016, an agreement with the Heritage Foundation aims to restore it, with work still underway in 2023. The site also preserves traces of its medieval past, such as near circular ecclesial enclosures, ancient cemetery, and the fossil site of Casteriou to the north of the village, showing an ancient occupation.

The painted decoration of the vault, prior to the Revolution, and the monumental golden wooden baldaquin, originally from Médous, illustrate the artistic richness of the building. The 19th century saw repairs, such as the construction of a nave-backed stand and the consolidation of the cemetery wall. Today, the church remains a symbol of the religious and architectural heritage of the High Pyrénées.

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