Église de la Madeleine de Verneuil-sur-Avre, Church building in Verneuil d'Avre et d'Iton, France

The Église de la Madeleine is a church building with a striking limestone tower approximately 56 meters tall, adorned with over thirty religious statues. The structure displays a mixture of Romanesque and Gothic stylistic features with multiple aisles and richly carved stonework.

The church was built from the early 12th century, alongside the founding of Verneuil. Its 56-metre tower was begun in the late 15th century, but work stopped for 30 years for lack of funds. Artus Fillon, Bishop of Senlis and a native of Verneuil, funded its completion around 1525.

The church is dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene, and its name recalls the medieval town's devotion. Inside, a 16th-century Entombment group shows polychrome figures, and a statue of Joan of Arc at the stake carries the inscription "À Ste Jeanne d'Arc. La paroisse reconnaissante. 15 juin 1940 - 22 août 1944".

The 56-metre tower rises above the town and is visible from kilometres around, so it works as a landmark for finding the church. The building is listed as a monument historique, and the interior holds the 1778 organ, the 16th-century Mise au tombeau and the 1826 cenotaph by David d'Angers. Look for the tower's carved decoration, compared to Rouen's Tour de Beurre and Saint-Ouen lantern tower.

The tower's carved decoration led it to be compared with Rouen's Tour de Beurre at Notre-Dame cathedral and the lantern tower of Saint-Ouen abbey. Inside, a 16th-century Mise au tombeau shows polychrome figures, and David d'Angers delivered in 1826 a cenotaph to Louis de Frotté and seven officers shot at Verneuil on 18 February 1800.