Chelles Abbey, Merovingian abbey in Chelles, France
Chelles Abbey is a former Benedictine women's monastery in the town center of Chelles, east of Paris. The original complex once included a church, residences, and workshops, of which only scattered fragments survive today.
The abbey was founded in the 7th century by Queen Bathildis, wife of King Clovis II, on the site of a Merovingian royal villa. During the French Revolution, the monastery was shut down and most of its buildings were torn down or converted.
The abbey's scriptorium was a place where nuns copied and sent religious texts to readers across Europe. This made Chelles a key center for written knowledge in the early medieval world.
The surviving remains are built into the local government buildings in the center of Chelles and can be seen while walking through the area. Since the historical elements are spread across the town, it is worth moving slowly and looking carefully.
The Chelles chalice, a piece of early medieval metalwork attributed to Saint Eligius, was one of the most celebrated objects of the monastery before it disappeared during the Revolution. Its loss gives a sense of how much the abbey once held and how little has come down to us.
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