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Origin and history

The church of the Assumption-de-la-Très-Sainte-Vierge de Flavignac, located in Haute-Vienne (Nouvelle-Aquitaine), has its origins in the 9th century, where a vicarie and a merovingian or Carolingian cella already existed. A first Romanesque church, built in 1084, preserves some remains such as a doubleau and two round columns engaged in the north wall. Until the 13th century, it was dedicated to Saint-Martial and was probably limited to a nave without a vault of two spans and an apse choir.

From the middle of the 15th century, the building was completely rebuilt and enlarged: the chapel Notre-Dame de Pitié was added to the south, the old choir was replaced by a transept and a flat bedside, and a span was added to the west. The hexagonal bell tower, rare in Limousin, is erected against the west gable probably in the sixteenth century, while a sacristy is added around 1700 north of the bedside. The south gate, dated around 1500, and its stair turret integrate with the beautification of the public square, liberated after the displacement of the cemetery.

The church houses an exceptional liturgical treasure, rediscovered in 1949 in a closet of the choir. Among the major pieces are a golden copper montrance-reliquary (late 13th century), a shawl of Saint Fortunat (a skull of a Roman martyr, offered at the end of 17th century), and the enamelled shawl of Saint Valérie (Work of Limoges, 13th century), deposited by the municipality of Meilhac. Other reliquaries, objects from the 13th to the 20th century, and a statue of St Peter (15th century) from the church of Texon complete this ensemble, illustrating the rural religious heritage.

The building, from plan to Latin cross, combines a unique nave of three arched bays, an asymmetric transept, and a flat bedside. The southern gate, decorated with deciduous columns and masks, is a rare example of flamboyant Gothic art in Limousin. Ranked a Historic Monument in 1926, the church is open daily and its treasure accessible to visiting hours.

The murals partially preserved in the southern chapel (XVI century) and the retables of the 17th to 18th centuries testify to its artistic evolution. The hexagonal bell tower, with its internal dome and triangular pediment, highlights the architectural originality of this place of worship, reflecting the social and religious transformations of the medieval and modern Limousin.

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