Avignon Cathedral

The Cathedral of Avignon or Cathédrale Notre- Dame des Doms d' Avignon is the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Avignon in the south of France and the seat of the Archbishop of Avignon Cathedral. The church is located above the papal palace on a rocky outcrop in the north of the city.

Description

The cathedral is a Romanesque building that has arisen mainly in the 12th century and initially consisted only of the nave. It was only during the pontificate of John XXII. in the 14th century, the cathedral was added to the side chapels.

Cathedral in the city image

Cathedral in the city image

In the 17th century the chancel was rebuilt (1670 ) and added a gallery in baroque style. In the presbytery there is a crafted from white marble bishop's throne in the 12th century, on which sat the popes. It is decorated with sculptures of the symbols of the Evangelists Mark and Luke ( winged lion and a winged bull).

During the French Revolution, the cathedral was badly damaged and turned into a prison. The cathedral was rebuilt in the first half of the 19th century on the initiative of the then archbishop and later Cardinal Jacob du Pont.

Of the numerous works of art inside the cathedral is the mausoleum of Pope John XXII. probably the most important. It is a masterpiece of Gothic carving of the 14th century. In the same chapel the treasury is also housed, will be exhibited in the liturgical vessels and clothes, reliquaries, and ritual objects.

Since 1995, the cathedral belongs together with the Pope's Palace (Palais des Papes ) and the Pont Saint- Benezet called stone bridge over the Rhone, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Tomb of Benedict XII.

St. Benezet

Episcopal

Tower Statue

The most striking feature of the cathedral is the 4.5 ton made ​​of lead, gilded statue of the Virgin Mary, which dominates the western tower since 1859. The east tower, which is now the city bell tower collapsed in 1405, but was rebuilt in 1425 already.

Organs

The organ was built in 1818 by a Lombard organ builder Piantanida as "Italian instrument ". 1860 took the organ builder Théodore Puget (Toulouse) some changes. In 1966, the instrument by the organ builder Alain Sals ( Malaucène ) has been restored to its original state. The last restoration led the Italian organ manufacturer Mascioni from in 2004. The instrument has registers on a manual without a separate pedal work. The attached pedal is determined by register moves from manual work.

Bells

The bell tower has a carillon with 35 bells and is a total weight of 12 tons. 13 bells are swinging läutbar. The " Bourdon ", the largest bell in the Cathedral ( " Maria de Domnis " ) weighs only 6300 kg. The bell dates from 1854, cast by the foundry Pierre Pierron (Avignon ). More bells date from 1856 ( Glockengießer Burdin from Lyon) and the years 1979 and 1989, when the ensemble was expanded.