Church of Notre-Dame-de-la-Mer, Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer

The church of Notre-Dame-de-la-Mer overlooks the town of Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, in the Camargue, in the Bouches-du-Rhône. With its single nave, battlements and wall walk, it is more of a fortress than a village church, and it can be seen from some ten kilometres around. Listed as a historic monument since 1840, it remains the heart of the pilgrimage to the Saintes Maries.

From the Ratis raft to the fortified church

The Latin poet Avienus mentions as early as the 4^th century an old oppidum on an islet at this spot. In the 6^th century the place took the name Sancta Maria de Ratis, "Holy Mary of the raft", and Bishop Caesarius of Arles established a community of nuns there in 547. Threatened by Saracens and Vikings, the site was abandoned, and a church was later rebuilt after 973. In 1078, the abbey of Montmajour founded a priory there and the church took the name Notre-Dame-de-la-Mer. The present building was rebuilt between 1165 and 1170, then raised and fortified in the 14^th and 15^th centuries against pirate raids. A well dug in the nave recalls that the population came there to take shelter.

The Saintes-Maries and Sara

According to Christian tradition, Mary Jacobe and Mary Salome are said to have landed on this coast. In 1343, Pope Benedict XII set their feast days on 25 May and 22 October. In 1448, King René had the church floor excavated: bones attributed to the saints were unearthed and have since been placed in a reliquary. It is kept in the upper chapel dedicated to Saint Michael, arranged in the former guardroom above the choir, and is only brought down for the pilgrimage. Beneath the choir, the crypt dug during those excavations houses the statue of Sara the Black, dressed and surrounded by ex-votos. Since 1936, the Romani have immersed her statue in the sea on the eve of the procession of the Maries, carrying it in their boat.

What to look at once inside

The nave, with a pointed barrel vault, has almost no decoration. The eye is drawn towards the apse with its semi-dome and its eight marble colonnettes. Two of their capitals, one devoted to the Incarnation and the other to the sacrifice of Abraham, are considered masterpieces of Provençal Romanesque art. Near the portal, a holy-water stoup has been carved out of an old capital.

An energetic place on the Mediterranean coast

Enthusiasts of energetic places count Notre-Dame-de-la-Mer among the sites that have impressed them most. The fervour surrounding Sara's crypt surely plays a part, as does the sea close by, which holds such a large place in the pilgrimage rites. Did you feel something on descending towards the crypt? Tell us about it in the comments.