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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The chapel of Madeleine du Croulay, located in Cravant-les-Côteaux (Indre-et-Loire), dates back to the 15th century and is distinguished by its hybrid architecture, combining a rectangular stone nave and a troglodytic choir carved into the rock. The anterior façade, pierced by a low arched door and a broken arched bay, gives access to a nave formerly arched by dogives, illuminated by narrow bays. This monument, classified in 1947, illustrates the adaptation of medieval religious buildings to local geological constraints.

The choir, housed in a natural cave, communicates with a second cavity equipped with a chimney carved in the rock, adorned with two crosses patted in relief. This secondary cave, extended to the west by vestiges of walls, suggests a use as living or meeting space. The chapel was a dependency of the Cordeliers du Croulay convent, whose ruins remain nearby, emphasizing its role in the monastic and spiritual life of the region in the 15th century.

The preserved architectural elements – vaults on dogive crosses, broken arches and basket handle – bear witness to late Gothic influences. The inscription in the Historical Monuments in 1947 preserved these remains, although their exact location remains approximate (map precision noted 5/10). The absence of sources detailing post-medieval uses limits the knowledge of its subsequent evolution.

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