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Origin and history

The church of Saint-Ouen de Périers-sur-le-Dan, located in Calvados in Normandy, has its origins in the eighth century. She was named in honour of Saint Ouen, bishop of Rouen (640-684), whose relics were considered miraculous. The first building, built on a fish ridge, was destroyed in the 9th century during Norman raids. After the conquest of England in 1066, the Normans completed its reconstruction in the 11th century, adding a northern collateral and a green slate roof of the Cotentin.

In the 13th century, the choir was rebuilt in a Gothic style, with elements such as a thawed door and a trilobed credence. The walls were decorated with frescoes from the 14th century, illustrating the life of Saint Ouen. During the Hundred Years War (1337-1453), the church fell into ruins, losing its side. In the 16th century, it became a Protestant temple (1557-1577) before returning to the Catholics, who masked the frescoes under a white padigeon in the 17th century. In 1791, the parish was attached to Mathieu after the flight of the refractory priest.

Ranked a Historic Monument in 1914, the church was searched in 1929 and 1970, revealing Merovingian remains. Restorations in the 1980s allowed the choir to reopen for cultural events. Its architecture combines Romanesque elements (nef of the 11th century, northern arcade) and Gothic elements (chœur of the 13th century, ogival vaults). The 17th-century altarpiece, adorned with a painting depicting the Adoration of the Magi, and the 13th and 14th-century wall paintings (restored in 2003-2006) make this a rare testimony of Norman medieval art.

Today, the church, partially in ruins, retains an open nave with apparent walls and a closed choir, housing some of the oldest and most legible frescoes in Normandy. Its wall bell tower, designed for two bells, and its architectural details (buttress, carved capitals) illustrate the stylistic evolutions between the novel and the Gothic. The Merovingian and Carolingian remains discovered on the site underline its historic importance for more than a thousand years.

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