Romanesque Architecture of Languedoc

Aude: Crossroads of the Romanesque

Languedoc: land of passage, land of refuge, where the mountains still reverberate to the murmur of prayer and the clash of combat. The Spaniards were here, and the Moors have left their imprint, as in the church of Rieux on the road to Compostela; the memory of the Lombards also endures. Here, legends and tales are greatly appreciated. With a historian and artisans as our very informative guides, we rediscover that universal desire to be in osmosis with heaven and earth, which is the prime ambition of the Romanesque. In this way we journey around Caunes-Minervois, Rieux, Montbun, Escales, St Hilaire, St Gilles du Gard and Fontfroide. Many of the sites are ruined, and this film proposes a surprising alternative to the familiar desire to see Romanesque churches rebuilt and their original purpose restored - there is a verity and an authenticity in their ruined condition, testifying to time, and change, yet enduring in fragmented form.

© 1998-2008 The Roland Collection & Pira Intl.