First, a house on the outskirts of Dinant. I know it looks a bit Addams-ish, but I really liked the way it sits against the green woods behind.
And this is the entrance to the convent of Maredret.
Inside, the abbey had a layout which I haven't seen before. I've done my best to both use and clarify the right architectural terms here (there were several which I needed to look up myself). There was a normal nave (the main bit, where the congregation sits), running from the narthex (entrance) to the sanctuary rail. You then have the 'crossing': the point where the nave is intersected by the transepts (the two 'arms' of the classic cruciform church shape). Ahead is where you would expect to find the altar, in the apse (the 'head' of the cross shape), and to the right is the south transept. All those were pretty normal, but the north transept was unusual; about as long as the nave, it was lined with beautiful wooden stalls for the nuns, and in the centre of the northernmost end, a 'throne' presumably for the abbess.
Posted by racingsnake
@ 03:39 PM GMT+00:00
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