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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

La Croix de Saint-Just, located in Juré in the Loire department (region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes), is a religious monument erected in the 1st quarter of the 16th century. It bears the date of 1511, engraved on its structure, and was classified as a Historical Monument by order of 29 December 1949. This cross, owned by the commune, illustrates the rural religious architecture of the Renaissance in Forez, an area marked by an increase in Christian symbolic constructions after the Middle Ages.

The location of the Cross of Saint-Just, at 553 Rue de la Croix Saint-Just, reflects its anchoring in the local landscape. Although the sources do not specify its sponsor or its exact use, this type of monument often served as a spiritual or commemorative landmark for rural communities. The crosses of this period were generally erected at crossroads, near churches or on pilgrimage paths, playing a role both religious and social in the lives of the inhabitants.

The 1949 classification underlines its heritage value, although the available data do not detail the precise reasons for this protection. Today, its state of conservation and accessibility (noted as fair for accuracy of location) make it a material testimony of local history, linked to the devoted practices and territorial organization of the Loire in the Renaissance.

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