Mâcon Cathedral

First dedicated to St Bartholomew, then to Saint Protase and Saint Gervase, the former cathedral of Mâcon had its name changed once more in 541, when King Childebert donated a bone from the right arm of Saint Vincent to the city. He brought this relic back from Zaragoza along with considerable booty he had seized in Spain.

Despite the many damages it suffered throughout history, the Mâcon Cathedral was still used for worship in 1789, although dilapidated, and was later sold as national property. In the last years of the eighteenth century, the demolition of the old cathedral was decided and carried out, leaving only the two towers and the narthex standing. In 1801, under the Concordat, the bishopric of Mâcon was abolished and merged with that of Autun.

It was not before the mid-nineteenth century that the building aroused new interest and became the focus of several restoration campaigns, which led to its reopening to the public at the end of the 20th century.

The caption reads in the original French: Vue des tours de Saint-Vincent de Mâcon, département de Saône-et-Loire.