It’s a miracle. For around a thousand years, this small chapel in the shape of a Greek cross has stood apart from the small village of Mérifons (Hérault). She watches over the splendid Salagou valley. Its long history should, in all likelihood, have ended in ruins. An enormous hackberry tree even grew inside… Until an association took over in the 1970s. Today, once a year, the building opens its doors for Thursday mass of the Ascension.
But a new threat appears. Moss and mold are deposited on the interior walls: “The roof was redone in the 1970s with slate stone but without the appropriate techniques,” says the mayor, Sophie Costeau. The roof is not steep enough and the stone is waterlogged. »
Before the humidity causes further damage, work is aimed at tilting the roof further. Following its momentum, the church will feature stained glass windows and the town hall plans to erect a columbarium nearby: as the village does not have a cemetery, residents will be able to place funeral urns there. In a small town of around forty souls, it is all these efforts to bring the site to life which are crowned by the Pilgrim Prize for Transmission and Sharing in partnership with the La Sauvegarde de l’art français foundation.
Belgium
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