Church of Notre-Dame du Bourg

UNESCO World Heritage listed (in the context of the Santiago Pilgrim Ways). The first church built in the region in the south Gothic style; it retains a magnificent portal decorated with eight Romanesque capitals and remarkable wall paintings carried out between the 13th and 16th centuries.

Back in the 16th century, when the French Religious Wars were in full effect, the church of Notre-Dame du Bourg at Rabastens was looted by the Protestants, who then turned the building into a military barracks. When the Catholics finally reclaimed their church, they covered it in lime to ‘purify’ it. It was only when some restoration work was being done in the 19th century that paintings – hidden by the lime for centuries – were rediscovered, preserved in fabulous condition. The interior of Notre-Dame du Bourg is seriously flamboyant with red as the dominant colour, accented with blue and gold. Any visitor will be stunned by the beauty of the decoration.