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Churches, oratories and chapels: our religious heritage
From the middle of the 17th to the 20th centuries, the inhabitants of the Pays du Mont-Blanc filled the landscape with highly decorated oratories, churches and chapels. An incredible religious heritage which today still enchants everyone interested in religious art as much as people on spiritual journeys.
Religious art in the Pays du Mont-Blanc is a unique history with marvellous buildings like the oratories in Les Contamines-Montjoie, the Calvary in Megève and along the Baroque route from Combloux to Notre Dame des Gorges in Les Contamines-Montjoie - the best way to discover Baroque art which was initially the response of the Roman Catholic church to the spread of Calvinism. Baroque was an artistic language supposed to reflect the divine protection of mountain dwellers and brighten their harsh lives. This history is related to that of the hawkers who, each autumn, took the road through the "Germanies" - Bavaria, Saxony and Eastern France - to sell all kinds of products. Some made their fortunes and sent colossal sums of money to build and decorate churches and chapels. Italian craftsmen from Valsesia, a high valley below the Monte Rosa, carved altars and reredos and decorated the churches with gold leaf and chubby-cheeked angels.
The tradition of crafts and art continued in the 20th century. Imagined by architect Novarina and decorated by the greatest masters of modern art including Braque, Chagall, Matisse and Leger the church of Notre Dame de Toute Grâce in Passy is an absolute "must" visit and a truly spiritual discovery!
