"...Take me to church, Good God, let me give you my life״ / Our next door neighbour, The Saint-Pantaléon church.
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25 meters from our Château Cramirat is our next-door neighbor, the unique and beautiful 11th- century church called - Église Saint-Pantaléon. We hear the church's bells every day as a reminder of the events and people that had once lived here and are the forefathers of this 1000-year-old village.
The two buildings are linked in many ways: Architecturally, they share the same motifs, Château Cramirat drew from local traditions and was built to echo the church’s style; both standing to this day as the largest and most impressive buildings in the ancient village of Sergeac. The church had been the focal point of community life at the time, once the château was built next to it, a new space opened for everyday functions, replacing the church as a cultural and social center. Château Cramirat complemented the church, offering a place of hiding and security.
A + marked into a stone on the château’s external wall, near the back gate, corresponds with + on the church wall, by the side door, both facing in the same direction. The machicolation supporting the roof of the château tower is also visible on the exterior walls of the church. The roof of the two structures is made of traditional Lauze stones.
The church, which predates the château by some two hundred years, has unique characteristics too. The most extraordinary is the medieval sundial engraved on the east church wall, used for determining prayer time, and the decorated Roman columns adorning the main entrance, with traces of gargoyles.
A stone cross built into the château’s inner wall, opposite the entrance to the main hall and kitchen, faces in the direction of the church to symbolize faith as the cornerstone of life in the château. We make our own friends, but God makes our next-door neighbors.
23 авг 2021
