Saint-Denis Basilica

Gothic architecture can trace its roots to the 12th century basilica of Saint Denis just outside Paris.  The church is located above a burial site thought to contain the remains of Saint Denis, a bishop of Paris who was martyred in the 3rd century.

There has been a church on the site since 750 AD, but the building was expanded and rebuilt in the 1130's at the direction of Abbot Suger, an influential religious and political figure.

tympanum and central doorway of the western facade

A hallmark of gothic architecture is the emphasis on vertical space; the building seems to soar heavenward.

There are gorgeous stained windows in the nave...

... and an impressive rose window on the north transept.

Sunlight streams through the windows and makes colored patterns on the stone.

In the crypt they have excavated the area where Saint Denis was believed to have been buried.  St. Denis was beheaded for his beliefs in 250 AD on the hill in Montmartre.  As the legend goes, he picked up his severed head and walked several kilometers to this site, preaching a sermon the whole way.

But the basilica is best known as the final resting place of kings.  The necropolis is the burial site of 42 of France's monarchs.  There are many ornate tombs in the crypt and transepts.  Most feature a likeness of the deceased.  François I (friend of Leonardo da Vinci) is buried in an elaborate tomb with his wife Claude and several of their children.

The tomb is one of several two-level "cadaver tombs".  On the upper level are effigies of the deceased as they were in life, but on the lower level they are depicted as they were at the time of their death, a nod to the fact that all men are judged the same in the afterlife.

It was common practice at the time to remove the entrails for separate burial.  This nearby urn was constructed to hold François' heart.

At one time the tombs were brightly painted; you can see traces of blue and gold paint on the tomb of Philippe de France (brother of Saint Louis).  His feet rest on a lion; this was a symbol of valor and nobility.

 Another monumental cadaver tomb shows Henri II and Catherine de' Medici.

Nearby are two more gisants (recumbent statues) of Henri II and Catherine de' Medici.  These effigies show the couple in coronation dress.

Not all of the tombs were decorated with white marble.  There was one effigy sculpted from Tournai limestone.  It is thought to be of Marie de Brienne, Empress of the Latin Empire of Constantinople (a crusader state).

There were also two (rare) metal tombs for two of Louis IX's children, who died in infancy.

Gilt tomb for Jean, son of Louis IX

And this stone mosaic tomb was created for Frédégonde, a ruthless queen who lived in the late 6th century.

The tombs in the transepts were all very ornate and pretty to look at.  Some of the tombs and sculptures in the crypt below were a little creepy.  Like the dessicated heart of Louis XVII (lower left) and the room of wooden coffins and reliquaries for various royal entrails (lower right).

I found it very interesting that most of the tombs are actually empty.  During the French Revolution in 1793, the anti-monarchy revolutionaries ordered the opening of all the royal tombs in Saint Denis and the remains were dumped into a pit and covered with quicklime.  Later (in the early 1800's), the pits were exhumed, but because it was impossible to tell who was who all the remains were placed instead in an ossuary in the crypt.  Only the royalty from the Bourbon restoration (in the 1800's) are actually in their tombs.

The Bourbons at rest