Dome of the convent church of Cistercian abbey Notre-Dame de Sénanque - Gordes (Vaucluse, PACA, France) - Domes of the (Under) World on Waymarking.com

The depicted 10 m wide massive stone octagonal dome can be found above nave of Romanesque convent church of the Cistercian abbey Notre-Dame de Sénanque, located close to the village of Gordes in the département of the Vaucluse in Provence.

Among Abbey existing structures, there are several examples of fine Cistercian Romanesque architecture - the abbey church, cloister, dormitory and chapter house, all of them are masive, austere buildinga with thick stone walls, typical for Cistercial architecture of this period. A refectory was added in the 17th century, when some minimal rebuilding of the existing walls was undertaken, but to this day the Abbey is a remarkably untouched in its Romanesque beauty and austerity. The interior of the Abbey church is in the shape of a Latin cross with three naves, five apses and an 10 m wide stone octagonal dome at the crossing of the transept. Somewhat unusually, its liturgical east end faces north, as the narrow and secluded valley offered no space for the conventional arrangement.

The Senanque Abbey was founded in 1148 under the patronage of Alfant, bishop of Cavaillon, and Raymond Berenger II, Count of Provence, by Cistercian monks who came from Mazan Abbey in the Ardeche. During the Wars of Religion the quarters for the lay brothers were destroyed and the Senanque Abbey was ransacked by Huguenots. The community was expelled 1903–1926 and departed to the Order's headquarters, Lerins Abbey on the island of St. Honorat, near Cannes. A small community returned in 1988. The monks who live at Sénanque grow lavender (visible in front of the abbey, illustration, right) and tend honey bees for their livelihood. Sénanque Abbey, thanks to its great preservation and beauty, belongs during season among the most visited touristic targets in Provence...