Chartres, capital of light and perfume.
Situated an hour from Paris, near the chateaux of the Loire, the town of Chartres is essentially known for its Cathedral, registered in the UNESCO world heritage list.
At the very start of the 13th century, a major surge of faith enabled reconstructing the cathedral of Notre Dame de Chartres (Our Lady of Chartres) on the foundations of older buildings, in less than a quarter of a century.
The names of the craftsmen who succeeded one another on this site are not known, but the result has a remarkable consistency. It is the first building constructed in the classic Gothic style. Reims, Amiens, Beauvais… repeated this same structure but simplified it and built it even higher.
Its iconographic programme has been preserved just as it was designed by the 12th and 13th century theologians. Thus, the cathedral presents 9 sculptured portals which are unique in France and 2600 m2 of stained glass. It is a true encyclopaedia of stone, made to educate Christians.
Expressions of theology and spirituality, these images promote an education in faith and life: «the thoughts themselves from the Middle Ages became visible, making the invisible visible» wrote Emile Mâle.
In Chartres, the colour blue dominates, but it is above all the blue of the stained-glass window of Notre Dame de la Belle Verrière which attracts visitors from all over the world. This luminous blue was obtained by colouring the molten glass with cobalt oxide. Afterwards, other, less expensive, blues would replace this 12th century blue.
Mediaeval splendour, the cathedral is radiant, capturing all angles. In the shade of its flying buttresses beats the heart of the old town. Winding streets and lanes with quaint names, lined with old gabled houses, steps running down to the town below which is reflected in the waters of the Eure...
Bustle around the market stalls, the charm of a small humpbacked bridge crossing the river, the elegance of the façades, the sparkle of the stained-glass windows of an old church, the riches of museums with thousands of treasures, the magic of a concert which livens up the town, the passion of a master craftsman, the freshness of a terrace near a watermill…
Chartres enjoys surprising...
