Église Saint-Jean-Baptiste, Romanesque church in Valence, France

Église Saint-Jean-Baptiste stands on place Saint-Jean at the highest point of Valence's old town. Its neo-Romanesque bell tower-porch, rebuilt in 1861 by architect Auguste Chauffeur, has a tympanum carved with a relief of Saint John the Baptist. The nave, rebuilt between 1840 and 1849 to drawings by diocesan architect H. Epailly, has round-arched arcatures, small columns with capitals and blind arcade friezes echoing Saint-Apollinaire Cathedral.

The lower part of the bell tower porch dates to the 12th century, though the church was first mentioned in the Valence chapter inventory in 1189 and is traditionally held to date from the early Middle Ages. Protestants set it on fire on All Saints' night in 1567. Bishop Jean de Catelan had it rebuilt in 1720, and it was inscribed as a monument historique on 4 August 1978.

The church keeps the relics of Saint Venant, bishop of Viviers in the 6th century, and the tomb of Christophoro d'Authier de Sisgau, bishop of Bethlehem, who founded Valence's first seminary in 1639. The neo-Romanesque porch tympanum carries a bas-relief of Saint John the Baptist, the parish's patron.

The church stands on place Saint-Jean at the highest point of the old town, reached on foot through narrow streets. The south portal's original bay was reopened during the 2005-2006 restoration, and its glazing lets you see the tower capitals from outside. The tomb of Christophoro d'Authier de Sisgau, founder of Valence's first seminary in 1639, survives inside.

The church keeps the relics of Saint Venant, bishop of Viviers in the 6th century. In the 15th century its bell tower carried a jacquemart, a mechanical figure striking the hours; after a fire destroyed the top of the tower in 1785, it was replaced by a wrought-iron campanile.