Airvault - Saint-Pierre

Saint-Pierre was the church of one of the largest Augustinian abbeys in the Poitou, that was founded in 991 by Audéarde, the wife of viscount Herbert I of Thouars. The monastery was on one of the "chemins" of the Via Turonensis, so when the number of pilgrims increased, the Canons Regular of St. Augustine had this large church erected in two construction phases from the 12th century on. This church is very long and has an ambulatory. It could surely host large groups of pilgrims.

When the era of the pilgrimage ended, the abbey declined and impoverished during the Hundred Years' War. Most conventual buildings were destroyed in the Wars of Religion. The abbey church now serves the parish.

Saint-Pierre has an extraordinary density of medieval carvings. Most of these works are well preserved. Lions are a dominant theme. Here is "Daniel in the Lions´ Den" on the left - and a pride of acrobatic lions with frightening teeth to the right.