ChapelLot
Sanctuaire de Rocamadour
Rocamadour
Dimensions
a religious city built into the cliff face, 150 m above the Alzou canyon
Period
12th–14th century
What stands there
seven chapels, including the Chapel of Notre-Dame and its Black Madonna
One of the great Marian pilgrimage sites of the medieval West from the 12th to the 14th century, and a UNESCO World Heritage site. The 12th-century Black Madonna, carved in walnut, still draws pilgrims from around the world. Legend also places Durandal here, Roland's sword, said to have been driven into the rock by Saint Michael.
Further reading
Getting there : Free entry to the sanctuaries; the Grand Staircase or a paid lift
Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.
Ambient sound
Nearby
- MontfauconBastide (planned town) · Montfaucon · 13 km
- Prieuré Saint-Pierre de CarennacChurch · Carennac · 16 km
- Labastide-MuratBastide (planned town) · Labastide-Murat · 17 km
- Château de Castelnau-BretenouxLegendary castle · Prudhomat · 20 km
- Château de FénelonLegendary castle · Sainte-Mondane · 22 km
- BretenouxBastide (planned town) · Bretenoux · 22 km
This place in the great stories
- Charlemagne and Roland: what happened at Roncevaux, and what the song made of itCoronation of Pepin the Short at Saint-Denis on 28 July 754; Charles king in 768; Spanish…
- The Ways of St James: from the tomb in Galicia to the four routes of FranceTomb recognised c. 820-830; first known pilgrim (Godescalc of Le Puy) in 950-951; Book of…
- The Black Madonnas: Romanesque majesties, revolutionary pyres and the mystery of the colourVirgins in Majesty of the 10th-12th centuries; blackening attested from the late Middle…
In the same department
All places — Lot (15).