Bordeaux : Sainte-Croix Church

The church already existed in 653. The building, which was destroyed in 729, was restored in 778. After being demolished by the Normans in 848, it was rebuilt in 902 by Guillaume Le Bon. The outdoor portico is the oldest part and probably dates from the 11th century. The main door is made up of five large arcades. On each side, it is flanked by a large niche, itself surmounted by two smaller niches. Under the arcades of the entrance, the angles between the columns are decorated with arabesques, interlacing, scrolls and sculptures of fantastic animals. A zodiac was started on the archivolt of the second arcade. The archivolts of the two large niches are decorated with sculpted groups. Above the portico, there were once two rows of niches, but only five left today. The plane of the church is on a Latin cross. It is made up of a nave and two aisles. The bell tower, square in shape, date before the Gothic style.