ÉGLISE SAINT-CHRISTOPHE

About

Listed as a Historic Monument.

Saint-Christophe Church, late 15th to early 16th century. The entire building was listed in 2001.

In the centre of the village, the church of Saint-Christophe is a building for which there is little published information, and its architectural appearance, although it tells a story of successive modifications and remodelling, does not allow it to be included or situated in a wider typology. Jurvielle, it seems, was never a parish (diocese of Comminges), but depended on the neighbouring village of Portet-de-Luchon. Poubeau, another neighbouring commune, was in the same situation, and one of the few historical records tells us that in the 18th century, the three villages vied with each other to house the parish church. Jurvielle is said to have hosted it between 1738 and 1740, but the construction of the new presbytery in Portet, from 1780 onwards, tipped the balance definitively in favour of the latter.

It seems that it was around 1853 that a major campaign of work, directed by the architect Salles, gave the building its current appearance. It is made up of four parts corresponding to successive additions. Firstly, the main nave, with its three-sided apse, appears to be the oldest part, dating from the 15th or 16th century. The aisles are not the same: the north aisle could be from the 17th century; the south aisle was rebuilt in 1853. The bell tower is a square tower to the west of the nave, the lower level of which may be medieval, while the bell storey, with its twin windows, dates from the 19th century.

Between 1893 and 1900, other works directed by the architect Dabos enabled the sacristy to be rebuilt and the space to the north of the church to be opened up. The interior decoration, and in particular the woodwork, give the building its character and were the reason for its protection. The south aisle has plaster vaults on laths, installed in the mid-19th century. Altarpieces decorate the altars: the one in the choir dates from the 18th century; the one in the north aisle dates from the early 17th century.

The church has interesting furniture from the late Middle Ages, including a 14th-century Saint Christopher, the church's titular figure, carrying an infant Jesus, unfortunately altered (MH), and a 15th-century polychrome Virgin and Child seated.