Alsace / Bas-Rhin

The construction of the "Église Saints-Pierre-et-Paul" started around 1150. The church is known for the carvings. Though some of these got damaged during the French Revolution, most of them are still in place. Size and the quality of some of them is really breathtaking. At least four different, very experienced stonemasons or carvers have worked here. One of these masters carved this smooth mermaid under the roof tiles. The mermaid is one of the many smaller carvings that dot the outer walls of the church.

Since the 12th century the fortress "Bytis Castrum" was known, located on a rock about 70 metres above the town. At that time the town belonged to the Duchy of Lorraine. Later Lorraine changed ownership to the counts of Zweibrücken-Bitsch, a line that became extinct in 1570. Bitche fell to the Lutheran County of Hanau Lichtenberg, but came back to Lorraine 36 years later and got re-catholicized. In 1680 France occupied the country. The subsequent reconstruction and redesign of the medieval castle to a modern fortress was done by Vauban. During the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, the fortress was besieged by Bavarian troops but could not be taken. After the war, Bitche was given to the German Empire as part of Alsace-Lorraine, but it changed back to France after WWI. It became German, after the French Campaign in the summer of 1940 and remained under German occupation. Since the end of WWII, it is - French again.

Congratulation! The boulangerie Witz-Rohmer, just opposite the "Église Saints-Pierre-et-Paul" has celebrated it´s 400th birthday! That was lareyd some years ago, but the post is still out. 15 generations of gifted bakers have lived and worked here. Now, we learned, it is the oldest bakery in France! Here is the (french) website of the bakery, telling the whole long story. www.rohmer-rosheim.fr/histoire.html Please note - on the left in front of the building the legendary Renault R4. Between 1961 and 1992 about 8 millions of these cars were produced. When I bought my very first car, the R4 was an option. But in the end I choose his older cousin, a (light blue) Citroen 2CV. Just in case, you do not remember the 2CV: www.ipernity.com/doc/323415/41596484//in/album/885004

Sélestat was probably not more than a village, when Charlemagne stayed here over Christmas 775. Strange enough, that nowadays Sélestat claims to be the place of origin of the christmas-tree, based on an invoice from 1521. All this has nothing to do with Sainte Foy seen here. The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some carvings) remained. Hildegard´s grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of the new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. The western facade (westwork), seen here, was (is?) disputed. The whole building had undergone a major reconstruction, as it was changed a lot in the 17th century. It got rebuilt to the romanesque layout within the 19th century. The two high towers dominating the facade today may in medieval times not have existed in this way. Well, I had been here just 3 months before, but now, I had new literature and the light had changed. So I took many photos again. Here is the link to the older photo: www.flickr.com/photos/martin-m-miles/4930539570/

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some cavings) remained. Hildegard´s grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of the new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastry, depending from the abbey St. Foy in Conques. Here the three apses with lots of carvings and the crossing tower, 42m high.

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some carvings) remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. The painting seen on the tympanum, is modern (better relatively recent), but the archivolts around and the carvings below and on the sides, depicting angels, griffons and dragons are from the 12th century.

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some carvings) remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. Here the facade of the small porch, leading to the main entrance, seen in the background. Each window has two aracdes with a central pillar.

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some cavings) remained. Hildegard´s grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of the new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastry, depending from the abbey St. Foy in Conques. A mermaid carved from a greyish stone under the roof of the central apse. This carving may originate from the older structure, as most other carvings are from red sandstone - and look much "smoother".

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the crypt and some carvings remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. Outside all around the main and the right apse runs a lombard band with carved capitals, Under the roofs here are corbels. I had taken (and uploaded) a photo of this mermaid some months ago, but then Paul G.M. asked be about the lateral carvings - and I had no photos of them. So this time, I was more carefully. Robert Will, author of "Alsace romane" (Éditions Zodiaque), who describes these carvings as of "lower artistic value" connects this carving to an illustration of the "Physiologus", a very common medieval bestiary. Around 1170 the "Physiologus" even got translated into local Alemannic in Hirsau (150kms southeast). One copy from the 9th century is the "Bern Physiologus", where I found the illustration, that Robert WIll probably had in mind. This illustration depicts two men rowing a boat - and catching pearls with the help of a swimming woman. This woman is naked - but she clearly has two legs, so this woman is not a mermaid. Here is an illustration: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:77-Fisiologo_di_Berna_-_rappor... The influence of the Physiologus during medieval times can hardly underestimated, but here, I think it is just "farmer - mermaid - fisher". And "farmer" and "fisher" stand for the common population of a town or village of that time. Here is general wikipedia-information about the "Physiologus" en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physiologus

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the crypt and some carvings remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. Outside all around the main and the right apse runs a lombard band with carved capitals, Under the roofs here are corbels. I had taken (and uploaded) a photo of this mermaid some months ago, but then Paul G.M. asked be about the lateral carvings - and I had no photos of them. So this time, I was more carefully. This is the left lateral side, depicting a man, using a pitchfork or shovel digging. He obviously is a farmer, preparing the soil for planting. Farmer was a very usual profession in medieval times. The man is naked. This is not an individuum, but stand as a symbol for "all farmers", what means for a commoner. Do not be disturbed by the mermaid ( = lust and sin). Concentrate on your work. The posture of the farmer shows, that he is concentrated. Note that the hand of the mermaid really goes all around the tail. The fingers on the back can only seen from this angle

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the crypt and some carvings remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. Outside all around the main and the right apse runs a lombard band with carved capitals, Under the roofs here are corbels. I had taken (and uploaded) a photo of this mermaid already some months ago. Paul G.M. had asked me about the lateral carvings - and I had no photos of them, but realised, that these surroundings could be very interesting. So this time, I was more vigilant - as the lateral sides of the mermaid are very interesting. Here is the same mermaid - in summer. www.flickr.com/photos/martin-m-miles/4930611490/in/photos...

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some carvings) remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. Between 1615 and 1767 Sainte-Foy was a Jesuit college. The jesuits prefered the baroque style and so changed a lot in and around the building. Most of that was erased during the reconstruction in the 1890s. All the carvings on the south side are from this baroque time. Here the second baroque mermaid, that may be connect to the romanesque one on the central apse. This mermaid is onetailed = "unicaudal",

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some carvings) remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. Between 1615 and 1767 Sainte-Foy was a Jesuit college. The jesuits prefered the baroque style and so changed a lot in and around the building. Most of that was erased during the reconstruction in the 1890s. All the carvings on the south side are from this baroque time. Here is one of two mermaids, that maybe connect to the romanesque mermaid on the central apse. This one has two tails.

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some carvings) remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. Between 1615 and 1767 Sainte-Foy was a Jesuit college. The jesuits prefered the baroque style and so changed a lot in and around the building. Most of that was erased during the reconstruction in the 1890s. All the carvings on the south side are from this baroque time. Here is a pig. Probably a pretty realistic one. Three hundred years ago, pigs looked different. These pigs were smaller, less fat and had longer legs and a much longer tail.

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some cavings) remained. Hildegard?s grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of the new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastry, depending from the abbey St. Foy in Conques. A giant beast (lion? bear?) carrying or retrieving a ram. This carving may originate from the older church at this place. A ram does stand sometimes for Thor, pagan god in the Germanic mythology, as he uses a cart, drawn by rams.

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some cavings) remained. Hildegard´s grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of the new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastry, depending from the abbey St. Foy in Conques. A man fighting a giant lion, carved from reddish sandstone. To get the very most space for the carvings, the carver placed the two figures diagonally, so creating a very vivid scene. Actually this theme ("man fighting lion") can be found twice outside the church. Thanks to Paula G.M. I now know, that this carving shows Samson, opening the lion´s mouth.

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the crypt and some carvings remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. Outside all around the main and the right apse runs a lombard band with carved capitals, Under the roofs here are corbels. I had taken (and uploaded) some photos of these capitals already three months ago, but there are more... A very untypical "master of the beasts". The man is on his knees, the lower legs bend to the sides (don´t try that!). He holds two chimares (or dragons) with his hands. The giant chimares have snake-like bodies and a lion-like heads. Though the seem to have his lower legs in their mouths, the chimares seem to grin. The master, who controls them, seems to be very stoic.

The "Église Sainte-Foy de Sélestat" was built in only 10 years between 1170 and 1180, succeeding an earlier ("Holy Sepulcre")church from around 1085 built by Hildegard von Egisheim. Of this church only the rectangular crypt (and some carvings) remained. Hildegard´s famous grandson Frederick I Barbarossa funded the construction of this new church, that was the center of a benedictine monastery, affiliated to the abbey St. Foy in Conques. The capital of the pillar in the right window depicts a group of four hunters (each on one side), holding four chimares (birds with lion heads), placed on each corner of the capital.