Le Palais des Papes (oh the alliteration)
June 10th 2006 23:00
Bonjour tout le monde!!
(Hey everyone.)
Moving around a little further around Avignon today, we come to the Palais des Papes or The Pope’s Palace. According to the Palace’s official website, it is one of the most visited monuments in France, welcoming more than 650 000 visitors each year. The group of buildings, including le Palais des Papes and le Pont Saint-Bénézet, are considered to be “world heritage for humanity” by UNESCO.
The enormous Palais des Papes (from wikipedia.org)
The palace itself is one of the largest and most important Gothic buildings in all of Europe: its floor space equally the equivalent of 4 Gothic Cathedrals!!! It stands as a symbol of the huge influence of the church throughout medieval history. Construction began on the Palace in 1335 and it took just under 20 years to complete. It was constructed under the advice of 2 builder popes: Benedict XII and his successor, Clement VI.
The Grand Chapel in the Palais des Papes (from wikipedia.org)
Visitors have access to over 20 rooms, which include the pope’s private quarters. There are frescoes and a multitude of artefacts to sift through on your visit. You are free to wander around the Palace and take your time or you can sign up to guided tours or self-tours with headsets. There is an entry fee and, for a little extra, you can get a tour in one of 7 languages.
If you want to see special events, a major art exhibition is held every summer in the Great Chapel and the Avignon Theatre Company give special performances in the Honour Courtyard during July.
For more information, check out the official website at http://www.palais-des-papes.com/anglais/index.html, or you can search “Palais des Papes” on Google (or another search engine) for the council’s website and other helpful tips, but unfortunately the latter are in French.
Ok. Have fun admiring le Palais in the photos and I’ll see you tomorrow.
À demain
Melinda
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