Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Notre-Dame de Rive-de-Gier was built between 1818 and 1845 to replace an old Romanesque church that had become too small. The first stone was blessed on February 15, 1818, and the building was completed in 1823, with an official consecration on December 16 of the same year. Work continued until 1845 to finalize certain elements. The church is representative of the neo-classical style, inspired by Doric temples, with local stone walls extracted from the Mouillon quarries. Its interior decoration, notably the frescoes of the choir made between 1850 and 1853 by the Italian painter Giovanni Zaccheo, makes it a major artistic monument. These frescoes, including La Dispute du Saint-Sacrement and La Cène, are inspired by masters such as Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci. The building was included in the inventory of Historic Monuments in 1981, and an interior restoration took place in 1983 with the support of the State and the Department.

The interior architecture of Notre-Dame is distinguished by its original vault, built with 8,000 briquettes of tuffeau transported by canal from the Ain. The stained glass windows, dated 1823 and made by the Hutter glassworks, as well as the chandeliers of 1874 (initially gas), add to its historical character. The chapels, dedicated to various themes (Sacré-Coeur, Saint-François-Régis, Fonts Baptistes), house works by local and Italian artists, such as the statues of Vittorio Zanetti (1886) or the paintings of Jean-Baptiste Frénet. The organ, installed in 1853 by Ducroquet, and the walnut pulpit (1822-1825) carved by the cabinetmaker Pardon of Lyon, complete this heritage. After World War I, a chapel was dedicated to dead soldiers, with a painting by Stephen Azambre (1919) and commemorative plaques.

The church of Notre-Dame also reflects the social and industrial history of Rive-de-Gier, mining town of the Loire. The presence of statues such as that of Saint Barbe, patron saint of miners, or the stained glass windows evoking labor-related saints (Saint Eloi, blacksmiths), testify to the local anchoring. The frescoes of Zaccheo, restored in 1983-1987, and the stained glass windows by Mauvernay (manufacture founded in 1838 in Saint-Galmier) illustrate the artistic exchanges between the region and Italy. Participatory funding for restorations (subscriptions, subsidies) shows the attachment of the inhabitants to this place, symbol both religious and identity in an area marked by the industrial revolution.

External links