Our Hometown's Namesake

The next day we went back over to Sainte Chapelle, the church for Taylor's paper.  It was definitely open this time and we only had to wait in line for about twenty minutes!  The building itself is kindof back behind the buildings around it so you don't really see the exterior until you're inside the wall.

I assume that last picture shows pieces that have fallen off or are being repaired.  We entered though the back to the basement room underneath the main chapel.  Every inch of wall and ceiling was covered in decoration.  Lots of gold, fleurs de lis, and little chapel icons.

That's Saint Louis at the end.  He had the chapel built between 1242 and 1248 to house the relics of the Passion of the Christ.  Once again, the sheer age of the structure was overwhelming.  Most of the decoration has probably been redone or restored, but it is still amazing to see.  I enjoyed the symmetrical ceiling and wall details the most.

Next we made our way up a spiral staircase (the only non-decorated part of the entire church) and into the main chapel.  It was quite a view, with so much color and story to take in.

The vertical glass panels going around the room tell the story of the Bible through the different books, starting with Genesis and ending at the apocalypse, depicted in the rose window.  Even though everything there was drawing your eye upwards, I quite enjoyed the floor detail.

After a quick run through the giftshop area downstairs, we headed back outside to some more beautiful views of the exterior.  On the way out, we saw a lot more gargoyles, a fancy gate, and a very ornate lamppost.

(photos by e.hunt)