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Origin and history

The Sainte-Maure church of Sainte-Maure, located in the Aube department in the Greater East region, is a Catholic religious building built in the 1st quarter of the 16th century and completed around the end of the same century. It is distinguished by its Latin cross plan, its five-sided apse, and a four-span nave, characteristic of Renaissance religious architecture. Classified as a Historic Monument in 1931, it houses rich furniture, including glass windows by Linard Gontier, paintings from the 16th and 17th centuries, and a pulpit carved by François Joseph Valtat.

Originally, the church was a parish of the Grand Deanate of Troyes, raised as a priory-secure in the Middle Ages. It was donated to Saint Martin-es-Aires Abbey in 1194 by Bishop Haice, originally dedicated to Saint Bartholomew before being associated with Saint Maure. Over the centuries, it became a place of pilgrimage: every 22 September, the monks of the Abbey Saint-Loup of Troyes organized a procession linking Troyes to Sainte-Maure. His status as a priory attracted several religious figures, including priests such as Felix Hardy (1421) and Pierre Bocquet (1508).

The church furniture reflects its historical and artistic importance. Among the notable elements are an eighteenth-century choir grid, baptismal fonts, and glass windows, including the Tree of Jesse and the Judgment of Solomon, made by Linard Gontier. The paintings, such as a Christ on the Cross (17th century) or wooden panels depicting the Nativity and the Escape in Egypt (16th century), bear witness to its cultural role. The building, owned by the commune, remains a symbol of the religious and architectural heritage of Champagne-Ardenne.

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