Church of St. Trophime, Arles, Romanesque and Gothic basilica in Arles, France.
The Church of St. Trophime features a magnificent Romanesque facade with intricate stone carvings depicting biblical scenes including the Last Judgment, complemented by a Gothic choir reconstructed in the 15th century.
Built in the 12th century on the site of a 5th-century basilica, the church served as a cathedral until 1801 and witnessed the coronation of Holy Roman Emperors Frederick Barbarossa in 1178 and Charles IV in 1365.
The church houses remarkable Romanesque sculptures on its west portal, medieval reliquaries, and Baroque paintings by artists like Louis Finson, representing centuries of religious art and regional devotion to Saint Trophime.
The cloister is entered through the courtyard of the building beside the church, not through the nave. The Romanesque north and east galleries were finished around 1210–1220; the south and west galleries are Gothic. The square bell tower rises 42 m above the crossing dome.
The cloister's north and east galleries, carved in the second half of the 12th century, were finished around 1210–1220; work then stopped suddenly. The south and west galleries, with ribbed vaults, were added in the late 14th century, so the square shows two building campaigns. The canons who used it lived under a reformed rule with a common dormitory and refectory.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,833 contributors worldwide.
