Outside le Basilisque St. Denis
Kind of lopsided, but if I understood correctly, the left tower got knocked down during construction, and the architecture style was changing, so they left the other tower off or something like that. I could be totally wrong people, so don't base any thesis papers of that info.
The Basilica was built from 1140-1280. Initially, there was a smaller abbey there that was dedicated to St. Denis. As the story goes, Saint Denis was the first bishop of Paris in 250. But the Romans didn't like him so much and they chopped off his head in Montmartre (literally Mount Martyr. I had a big 'aha' moment in class today). Saint Denis then (supposedly) picked up his head and carried it to where the church stands today just outside Paris. Which is a bit of a trek I might add. He then collapsed and the early Gallic Christians built him a tomb and a shrine on the spot where he fell. His story is depicted in the carvings and sculptures above the door below.
Calm down everyone, this is nothing to lose your head over.
Like Notre-Dame, Basilique St. Denis is a blend of Gothic and roman architecture.
Similar architecture to Notre Dame with the Voute d'Ogive (high peaked arches)
Belle vitreaux(pretty stained glass)
Most churches have stained glass windows, because the light streaming through them was supposed to represent God coming into the church.
Yet another Rose Window. I just can't get enough.
So many different sororities, but I KEPT GOING BACK TO THOSE FLEUR DE LYS
French royalty reps the KKG all day everyday. Can you tell I miss my Kappa Kappa Gamma sisters?
Et maintenant on commence avec tout les rois et les reines morts(And now we start with all the dead kings and queens). Here we have the tombs of King Charles Martel, King Clovis II, King Phillipe III le Hardi, and King Phillipe IV le Bel. King Louis IX (I hope you all remember the guy who built the Saint Chapelle and became a saint) collected all the previous ruler's bodies and decreed that all French Kings would be interred in the Basilique Saint Denis. I asked our professor if the bodies were still in there, but he said that all the royal remains were thrown out of their coffins during the French Revolution. All the coffins/sarcophagi are empty.
Although having their bodies interred in Saint-Denis was obligitoire, French kings could have a second burial site for their hearts if they wished. This fancy urn was for le coeur (the heart) of Francois I, and son corps (his body) was interred here, next to his wife, Claude. Oui, that was her name.
The statues on top of their tomb show Francois I, Claude, and their children.
Et voila ses pieds...I kind of want to tickle their toes. Mais c'est bizarre, et interdit aussi. I'm not really sure why they aren't wearing shoes.
Henri II and Catherine de Medici
Tombstone of Marie Antoinette
Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette
It was a very interesting church! I really enjoyed our visit, but I was also very glad to return to the warmth of my host family's apartment. For dinner we had a raclette, which is like fondue, only different. You don't dip food into the pot, instead the melted cheese was poured over what was on our plates. I asked, "est-ce je peux etre une grande touriste et prendre des photos s'il vous plait?" (Can I be a big tourist and take some pictures please?). They laughed and agreed. My host mom said that we were having this for dinner because it was so cold out. Raclette is a dish that comes from the Alps. You take some fromage (also called raclette), melt it and then pour it on ham, potatoes, broccoli, tomatoes, and whatever else tastes good with melted cheese on top (which is an awful lot).
Et voila les photos.......
Yum. It's been just over three weeks and I have still not had a bad meal here in France. La vie est belle. Tomorrow is my first lecture at the Sorbonne on Louis XIV. Hopefully it goes well!
Bisous,
Allison
Is that broccoli I see under all that cheese?
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