Abbey Church of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe

The Romanesque Abbey Church of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe, begun in the mid 11th century, contains many beautiful 11th- and 12th-century murals which are still in a remarkable state of preservation. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983. It is located in Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe, in Poitou, France.
The cruciform church carries a square tower over its crossing. The transept was built first, then the choir with its ambulatory with five radial chapels in the polygonal apse. In the next building campaign, three bays of the nave were added, the bell tower and its porch, and finally the last six bays of the nave. The bell tower is finished by a fine stone spire more than 80 meters high, added in the 14th century (and restored in the 19th century).
The barrel vaulted nave is supported on magnificently-scaled column with foliate capitals.
Below the church is the Crypt of St Savin and St Cyprian, also frescoed with the lives of these two saints.
==External links==
* Fully illustrated description of the church 
Category:World Heritage Sites in France
Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
Category:Romanesque architecture
cs:Klášter Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
es:Abadía de Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
fr:Abbaye de Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
hr:Opatijska crkva Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
ja:サン＝サヴァン・シュル・ガルタンプ修道院付属教会
pl:Opactwo Saint Savin sur Gartempe
ro:Biserica din Saint-Savin sur Gartempe
ru:Сен-Савен-сюр-Гартамп (аббатство)
sv:Klosterkyrkan i Saint-Savin sur Gartempe
th:แอบบีแซงต์-ซาแว็ง-ซูร์-การ์ตองป์
vi:Tu viện Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe
zh:圣塞文-梭尔-加尔坦佩教堂