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The Joseph Fau's Museum |
Recently laid out in an old building facing the pilgrims fountain, below the church square, the Treasure II shelters a rich furniture, statues and tapestries from the abbey and church, as well as a lapidary museum. Its name refers to the former mayor of Conques, Doctor Joseph Fau.
Among the pieces which compose the museum, we can discover :
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A series of statues in painted or gold-plated wood from the XVth to the XVIIIth century
amongst which some are high-quality specimens : Group of the Annunciation, virgins with
child, recumbent statue of Christ coming from an entombment, Pope Saint Marcel etc...
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A great choir lectern in oak wood (XVIIth century).
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Relics cabinet in sculpted and painted wood, in the past situated in the church. Recently
restored, it is decorated with cherubs' heads. Its recesses contained the main reliquaries
of the
Treasure,
such as the
golden statue of Saint Foy
in the centre (XVIIth century).
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Felletin tapestries (XVIIth century).
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Picture of Saint Roch (middle of the XIXth century) painted by Delmas, an artist from
Rodez. In the background, we can notice a portrayal of the
church of Saint Foy
deprived of its two front towers.
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A great chasuble wardrobe in oak wood with some funny American Indians' heads sculpted on
the doors.
- Reconstitution of an abbey bedroom in the XVIIth century : big hearth with painted medallions, chest, a Louis XIV table with five legs called "the abbots' table". A canopy-bed is signed by the master cabinet-maker Guillaume Chirac at Conques. His son Pierre, after some outstanding medical studies in Montpellier became the doctor for the Regent and King Louis XV.
- A striking series of seven tapestries is dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalen's life (the first called "The life of pleasure of the sinner of the gospel" , is shown in Chirac's bedroom). We know that the canons acquired these tapestries in 1634 in order to hang them in the choir.
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Some staffs of the confraternity of the Blue Friars of Conques.
- The lapidary museum gathers in a beautiful display roman capitals and abacuses coming for the most part from the old cloister, as well as a series of stones bearing latin inscriptions and some vestiges of the abbey-church's old roman pavement with marble and porphyry inlays. On the stairs, the recess contains some sculpted vestiges of the Xth century church, in particular a chancel pillar in red sandstone with typical interlacing decorations.
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Texts from Jean-Claude FAU
Editions of Beffroi - Regional Council of Aveyron Photographs from André KUMURDJIAN Translation from Valérie FABRE |
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