Tourist attractions in Paris : L’église Saint-Eustache
The Church of St Eustace is a church in the 1st arrondissement of Paris situated in Les Halles, an area once renowned for fresh produce of all kinds which was demolished in 1971.
Construction of the current church began in 1532 on the site of an old chapel, however, the work was not completed until 1637. The name of the church refers to Saint Eustace, a Roman general of the second century AD who was burned, along with his family, for converting to Christianity. During the French Revolution the church, like most churches in Paris, was desecrated, looted, and used for a time as a barn. The church was restored after the Revolution had run its course and remains in use until today.
The church is an example of a Gothic structure clothed in Renaissance detail. Although the architects are unknown, similarities to designs used in the extension of the church of Saint-Maclou in Pontoise (begun in 1525) point to Jean Delamarre and/or Pierre Le Mercier, who collaborated in that work. The Eglise Saint-Eustache is known for its unusual dimensions (33m tall, 105m long and 43m wide) which make it seem more like a cathedral. At the main façade, the left tower has been completed in Renaissance style, while the right tower remains a stump. The front and rear aspects provide a remarkable contrast between the comparatively sober classical front and the exuberant rear, which integrates Gothic forms and organization with Classical details.
The beautiful stained glass windows, created by Soulignac in 1632, are probably modeled after drawings of Philippe de Champaigne. The church also contains many paintings such as Tobias and the Angel by Santi di Tito and an early work by P.P. Rubens, Pilgrims of Emmaus. A tomb designed by Le Brun holds the body of Jean Baptiste Colbert, French minister of Finance in the 16th century.
The L'écoute sculpture by Henri de Miller appears outside the church, to the south. A Keith Haring sculpture made of silver stands in a chapel of the church in memory of the epidemic of AIDS deaths during the 1980s.
With 8,000 pipes, the organ is reputed to be the largest pipe organ in France, surpassing the organs of Saint Sulpice and Notre Dame de Paris. The present instrument was designed under the direction of a French composer and organist, Jean Guillou and dates from 1989 and was built by the Dutch firm of Van den Heuvel retaining a few ranks of pipes from the former organ.
Text Source : wikipedia.org
