Author Archives: Henri-Jean LEPETIT

Let’s share our escapades!

We visited the Basilica di Santa Caterina di Alessandria in Galatina

Saint Catherine’s Basilica is located in Galatina in the region of Apulia in Italy south.
From Romanesque-Gothic style, it represents one of the most beautiful artistic
jewels of Salento
.
It was built between 1384 and 1391 by Count Raimondello Orsini-Del Balzo following his
triumphant return from the Holy Land, from where he brought back a relic of Saint Catherine.
His wife Marie d’Enghien had the walls and vaults completely covered with a sumptuous cycle of frescoes, for which she made call for artists from different regions of Italy,
from the Giottesque and Sienese schools.

The facade is embellished by a very detailed rose window and by a main portal whose archivolts show astonishing animal and plant decoration.
Inside, we will notice the scale of the volumes and the large ribbed vaults.
The fresco cycle consists of approximately 150 scenes.

The Basilica di Santa Caterina di Alessandria – Photos HJLepetit (click on the image to enlarge it)

Easter in Saint-Maclou

Monday April 1, 2024
On the program : Easter eggs and tasting
products from Ferme du Bout du Chemin

In the chapel, between the choir and the nave, the tasting point with Annie, Téhanie and our guests for a day (click on the photo to enlarge it).

This Easter Monday, April 1, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., young and old responded to our invitation. After a guided tour of the premises, the chapel no longer held any secrets for anyone. The chocolate Easter eggs were a great success, as well as the tasting of cider and apple juice from Ferme du Bout du Chemin.
The atmosphere was as we like it: good-natured and warm.
Thank you to everyone who came and for those who could not come, next year, they will be able to make up for it since we will schedule this event again.

Thank you also to Annie, Téhanie and Christopher for having, on behalf of our association, welcomed our visitors.

Let’s share our escapades

We visited the Saint-Philibert chapel in Lanvern

The Saint-Philibert de Lanvern chapel is in Ploneour-Lanvern in Finistère.
It was built in the 11th century and dedicated to Saint Philibert ; it depends on a priory of the abbey of Landévennec.
In retaliation for the revolt of the Red Caps,in 1675 , the bell tower of the chapel is one of those decapitateds under the orders of Louis XIV and the Duke of Chaulnes, governor of Brittany.
The roof collapsed
shortly after the Second World War, successive municipalities having done nothing to save the building.

The site was cleared by a troop of scouts and a cement screed poured on the ridge of the walls to prevent water infiltration in 1967-19682. 

Since 1985, this chapel has been the subject of a magnificent restoration.
The Saint-Philibert chapel in Lanvern – Photos HJLepetit (click on the image to enlarge it)

Big Spring Cleaning

For the occasion, some members of the association’s office met at the chapel. From 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., they worked to clean the sacristy, choir and nave from top to bottom. 
Not a corner escaped the duster, the broom or the vacuum cleaner, after having been polished, the woodwork smelled of wax.
It was also an opportunity to make some usual repairs, to fill in the holes through which some visitors come in during our absence.
Satisfied with the work accomplished, once finished, we rang the bell before leaving the premises.
We arranged to meet again in October for a fall cleaning.

Thanks to Annie, Chantal, Christopher, Henri-Jean, Hervé,
Jean-Paul, Téhanie for their efficiency and good humor.

Hair blowing in the wind, in front of the chapel, the entire cleaning team (from left to right): Christopher, Annie, Henri-Jean, Chantal, Jean-Paul, Téhanie and Hervé
(click on the photo to enlarge it )

Let’s share our escapades

We visited the Basilica di Santa Croce in Lecce

The Basilica di Santa Croce is located in Italy, in Lecce in Puglia.
This masterpiece of 17th century Baroque art is the work of the city’s greatest architects, it is the most accomplished example of the particular style of baroque architecture which was developed in the 17th century in Lecce and its region.
It is marked by the abundance and exuberance of the exterior sculpted decoration as interior.
The construction of the basilica spanned almost a century, from 1549 to 1646.
Although it was originally planned in the Renaissance style, most of the work (notably the upper part of the facade and the portals) were undertaken in the 17th century in the new baroque style.

The Basilica di Santa Croce in Lecce – photos HJLepetit (click on the image to enlarge it)