Centre des monuments nationaux

Come and discover the abbey of La Sauve-Majeure founded in 1079 and located 29km from Bordeaux. This masterpiece of Romanesque art obtained UNESCO World Heritage listing as part of the Santiago de Compostela pilgrim routes.

Visiting the abbey of La Sauve-Majeure

• A majestic Benedictine monastery. Even though all that remains of the chapter house, cloisters, scriptorium, and refectory are ruins, the buildings which do still stand are highly representative of Romanesque art.

• Sculpted capitals. The famous capitals in the choir date from the early 12th century. They use an inspired allegorical and symbolic language and present scenes from the Bible, foliage patterns, and diverse mystical fauna representing virtues and sins. Outside the chevet, there is a harmonious series of bays and blind arcades decorated with sculpted capitals in the apse. Some of the sculpted modillions are exhibited in the Cloisters Museum in New York. 

• A natural setting. This beautiful, peaceful spot is an ideal place to relax beneath the age-old trees.

Understanding the abbey of La Sauve-Majeure

• The origin of its name. The abbey lies between the Garonne and the Dordogne, in the Entre-deux-Mers region, where there was once the Silva Major or great forest.

• A site that was rescued from the brink. The Revolution put paid to its monastic function, and after the Great War it all but disappeared before the grandiose ruins were listed as historic monuments in 1840 and acquired by the State in 1960.