Saint-Augustin, Paris
The Église Saint-Augustin de Paris (Church of St. Augustine) is a church in the VIIIe arrondissement of Paris, France. During the Second Empire, this area was undergoing considerable building work. Baron Haussmann was responsible for much of the design of the layout of Paris's rectilinear avenues, which called for prestigious edifices.
Saint-Augustin was built between 1860-1871 by Victor Baltard (architect of Les Halles) in an eclectic and vaguely Byzantine style. The structure is almost 100 metres in length, with a dome height of 80 metres, and was one of the first sizable buildings in Paris constructed around a metal frame. Saint-Augustin's facade features the four evangelists above arcades, and above them the twelve apostles and rosette window. Its stained glass windows depict bishops and martyrs of the 1st centuries, and cast-iron columns which feature polychrome angels. A statue of Joan of Arc, by Paul Dubois, was erected in the church in 1896.
Great organs
The church's organ was built by Charles Spackman Barker. One of the earliest organs to employ electricity, it features 54 stops with three 54-key manual keyboards and pedalboards. The great organs within the building are celebrated in the world of organ building.
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Église Saint-Augustin de Paris. |
- Patrimoine de France entry (French)
- Lartnouveau.com article (French)
- University of Quebec article on the organ
Coordinates: 48°52′34″N 2°19′8″E / 48.87611°N 2.31889°E