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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The church Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Maisonnais, located in the Cher department, is a Catholic religious building built in the middle of the 12th century. In a Romanesque style, it is distinguished by its bell tower-porch pierced with gimmicked berries in the middle of the hangar, its short vaulted choir in a broken cradle, and a semicircular apse adorned with a carved cornice. Originally dedicated to Saint Hippolyte, it belonged to the priory of Orsan, who held the parish worship before it was entrusted to a cleric appointed by the ladies of Orsan, tenants of the presbytery.

The church houses remarkable furniture, including three 16th century wooden statues: St Paul with his sword, St Peter with his key, and a Saint Anne teaching the Virgin, the latter carrying the arms of Louise de La Châtre, Prioress of Orsan in 1559. A local legend tells that this statue, thrown into the woods by the Huguenots during the priory's bag, miraculously returned to the altar every morning. The contemporary path of the cross is singularized by scenes painted on varnished earth plates, works by a potter from La Borne, a village renowned for its ceramics.

Ranked a historic monument since 6 October 1925, the church benefited from three restoration campaigns: the first between 1994 and 1996 (clocher, cover, nave), followed by a second from 1998 to 1999. Its architecture, typical of the Burgundy novel, and its history linked to the Priory of Orsan make it a precious testimony to the medieval religious heritage of the Centre-Val de Loire.

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