Chapelle Notre-Dame des Treize-Pierres

Villefranche-de-Rouergue

Tradition relates that in 1509 a carter named Colonges, his cart stuck fast in the mud on the road, saw the Virgin and the twelve apostles each set foot on a stone so that his team could get past the obstacle. After an inquiry held in April 1509, and with the authorisation of the bishop of Rodez, the town's consuls had a chapel built; the bishop blessed it on 1 June 1510, and tradition holds that the thirteen stones were set into it. Two side chapels were added in 1629–1630, following a vow made during the plague of 1628. The carter's story, handed down by local tradition, is not corroborated by any document contemporary with the events.

Encyclopédie Mariale (Marie de Nazareth) ↗

Getting there : Reached by car from Villefranche-de-Rouergue; the chapel is open during pilgrimages.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound