What do you do on a stormy, wet day in Brittany – well, you go churchcrawling!
I had read about the rood screen in the Church of Notre Dame at Lambader and so off we went. No outside pictures this time! The church dates from 1432-40, with major restoration in 1875-81. Apparently this site once belonged to the Knights Templar, and then became a Priory of the Order of St John of Jerusalem.
The Rood Screen is carved from oak and incredibly fine and delicate. Information about the age of the Screen varies; there seems to be agreement that it was donated by Marc de Troerin at some point between1481-1530. It is apparently his coat of arms which is held by the angel. The screen was painted but this was lost during restoration in the 19C – what a pity when you remember the screen in La Roche-Maurice.
We went next into Plouvorn to see the Church of St Peter, 17C, but restored in 18C/19C. Judging from the painting below which was hanging in the church this was once a considerable group of buildings.
A nearby cafe provided coffee to warm up and then on to Notre-Dame de Berven (1573-76), apparently built by the workshop at Kerjean, and originally called the Church of Our Lady of the Oak, founded in the 6C. The Triumphal Arch inspired that of Sizun.
The Church was locked, so on to Plouzévédé which was begun in 1672.
At Lanhouarneau we found the Church of Saint-Hervé, the blind saint always accompanied by his wolf. The church was founded in the 14C but rebuilt in the 18C, apart from its bell tower.
The cold and wet were getting into our bones – time to go home!
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