The birth of Lyon is closely tied to Christian history. There are numerous religious buildings, witnesses to the city’s power down the ages. Seat of the Primate of the Gauls, St John’s cathedral is currently seat of the bishopric. Open to the world, Lyon offers a place to every cult, and all cohabit peacefully; Birthplace of Christianity.... Lyon is the birthplace of Christianity in Gaul; it is also the scene of outbreaks of violence against Christians in 177. The first martyrs to be persecuted were Lyonnais. Blandine, Irénée, Pothin ...
The Church steps out of the shadows during the Middle Ages. The current city then becomes the seat of the Primate of the Gauls, first church of France, an honorary title it still bears. Lyon was a Papal City for nearly seventy years, and many important Church decisions were taken there: the excommunication of emperor Frederick II, the reconciliation between the Eastern and Western Churches, and particularly, the 1305 coronation of Pope Clement V at St Just.
THE BASILIK OF NOTRE-DAME-DE-LA-FOURVIÈRE
It was built on the site of the ancient Roman forum by architect Pierre Bossan. As a result of a vow taken by the Lyonnais population after the War of 1870, it was built next to the chapel to the Virgin. Though austere on the outside, the interior is lavishly decorated and boasts works of mosaics, stained glass and marble. The sprawling Saint Joseph Crypt is lit by daylight. The Museum of Religious Art exhibits liturgical vestments, ecclesiastical implements, and audiovisual productions illustrating Lyonnais piety in the XIXth Century. The Gardens of the Rosary, designed by Bossan, are meant to inspire meditation, while the Park on the Heights offers a pleasant walk.
ST JOHN’S CATHEDRAL
The cathedral was built between the XIIth and XVth Centuries. The seat of the bishopric follows all the rules of Roman and gothic architecture. The choir, the stained glass, the transepts’ rosettes; all are distinct features well worth discovering. The greatest originality of the building is its astronomical clock. At noon, and at two, three and four o’clock in the afternoon, it plays out the Annunciation. Next to the cathedral is the Romanic choir-school, which hosts the Museum of the Treasure, and sits amid an archaeological garden where remnants of the churches of Ste Croix and of St Étienne, along with those of a baptistery, can be found.
OLD LYON
At the time of the Renaissance, it is the city’s most prosperous borough. This is where Lyon’s greatest families, often of Italian descent, are established. They have magnificent private hotels built for themselves, bearing Florentine colours. Today, the Gadagne hotel is home to Lyon’s Historical Museum and the InternationalPuppet Museum. Characteristic of Renaissance constructions is the elegance of the galleries, arcades, towers, mullioned windows...
MUSÉE DES BEAUX ARTS :
Autour de l'ancien cloître, jardin orné de sculptures de Bourdelle ou de Rodin, les 70 salles qui constituent le musée rénové en 1998, abritent cette collection qui fait du musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon l'un des plus importants d'Europe. Cinq départements forment un véritable musée de la civilisation et illustrent tous les grands domaines de l'histoire de l'art de la Grèce antique à l'Egypte ancienne, de la sculpture à la peinture, ainsi que les arts graphiques et décoratifs du Moyen-Age à nos jours. Le département des antiquités couvre plus de trois millénaires d'histoire du Bassin méditerranéen et présente des oeuvres importantes des grandes civilisations antiques
MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS
Around the old cloister, a garden decorated with sculptures by Bourdelle or Rodin, the 70 rooms comprising the museum, which was renovated in 1998, host this collection, making Lyon’s Museum of Fine Arts one of the most important of its kind in Europe. Five departments combine to make a veritable Museum of Civilisation, illustrating all the great fields of art history, from ancient Greece to ancient Egypt, from sculpture to painting, and include the graphic and decorative arts from the Middle Ages to today. The Department of Antiquities covers over three millennia of Mediterranean history, and offers significant works of the great ancient civilisations.
MUSEUM OF GALLO-ROMAN CIVILISATION
With the Fourvière site, Lyon, capital of the Gauls and heir to a rich Gallo-Roman heritage, has managed to create an exceptional place to remember and to learn. The wealth of its collections, its setting and its original architecture allow this unique museum, with its amazing underground itinerary, the opportunity to offer a true voyage through time.
FOURVIÈRE NIGHTS
June 14 sees the opening of the 12th edition of the "Nuits de Fourvière", Lyon’s great performing-arts festival. Music, dance, theatre and cinema, in a holiday atmosphere beyond compare. Its original, multidisciplinary programme fosters the quality of the shows and guests it presents. The public knows: each year, greater crowds gather at these magical places, the Grand Theatre and Fourvière’s Odeum.
Lyon Tourist Center
Place Bellecour - BP 2254 - 69214 Lyon Cedex 02
Phone. +33 (0)4 72 77 69 69 - Fax : +33 (0)4 78 42 04 32
e-mail : info@lyon-france.com
www.lyon-france.com
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