The Basilica of Saint-Pierre in Avignon is a Gothic-style Catholic basilica on Place Saint-Pierre in Avignon. Built on the foundation of an earlier 7th-century structure, the current rebuild dates from 1358.
According to legend, the initial building was constructed in the 7th century and was destroyed by the Saracens. Foulques II began reconstruction on the ruins, and the Saint-Pierre church first appears in documents around this period. Cardinal Pierre des Prés' generosity in 1358 enabled the construction of structures for the cloister and the canon, which no longer exist. It was built as a college church by Pope Innocent VI.
The nave was extended and new chapels were added in the 15th century. The forecourt was built in 1486, and the bell tower in 1495. The facade's decorations begin around 1512. It was designated a historical monument in 1840. Pope Benedict XVI bestowed the title of minor basilica 2 on the Church of Saint Peter on May 4, 2012. Its magnificent hand-carved doors overlook Place Saint Pierre, not far from the Aubanel home and printing house.
It was built in 1524 on a Philippe Garcin study by Nicolas Gasc and Perrin Souquet. Two turrets frame this narrow façade. Antoine Volard's massive solid walnut doors are divided by a Virgin and Child attributed to Jean Péru.
The tower, built in 1495 by Jean-Baptise Lécuyer on an Avignonnais-type plan, has an octagonal drum, a square base, and a hooked spire.
The woodwork, altarpiece, pulpit, and paintings, notably an Adoration of the Shepherds by Simon de Chalons, can all be admired. Its extravagant Provençal Gothic façade is the most ornate of any church in Avignon, and the doors alone are worth seeing.
The doors of Avignon's Saint-Pierre Church. They are 4 meters high in solid walnut and enable access to the church's single nave; the trumeau separating the two doors has a wonderfully sculpted canopy behind which there is still a stunning Virgin and Child attributed to Jean Peru.
Duration RequiredPlace Saint Pierre, 84000, Avignon France
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