Saint Martin

The church is visible through a glass entrance.

For Saint-Médard's Day, around 8 June.
And for the parish festival, on the 3rd Sunday in August.

The church of Saint Martin in Vieux-Virton can be considered the original parish of Saint-Mard. Indeed, the title Saint Martin, its extra muros location and the chronology revealed during the excavations point to a very old church. The site was occupied as early as the Gallo-Roman period (presence of cellars and a small temple), but the very first Christian building was Carolingian, as attested by a few burials uncovered under the church.

The early church dates from the 8th century and was built of stone. In the 9th or 10th century, a second building was erected. Two carved blocks from the High Roman Empire, which can still be seen today, were used as a replacement. A third construction phase took place in the 10th-11th centuries. It was at this time that the nave was extended. A clearly visible seam bears witness to this extension.

A square choir was built in the 11th and 12th centuries and the whole ensemble became the Romanesque church. In the 13th century, a large keep tower was built against the western wall of the nave. Finally, in the 18th century, two private chapels and a sacristy were added to the church to give it its present form.

Inside, the furniture is in the regional baroque style. The painting of the vaults forms a whole with the three altars. The vault is made up of several parts, and is divided by elements that emphasise its structure. The paintings do not form a continuous scene, but are conceived as independent pictures, framed by mouldings.

The complex has been classified as a Monument and Site since 1972.

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