Palace of Tau

The Palace of Tau (French: Palais du Tau) in Reims, France, was the palace of the Archbishop of Reims. It is associated with the kings of France, whose coronation was held in the nearby cathedral of Notre-Dame de Reims and the following coronation banquet in the palace itself.

Palace of Tau
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Palace of Tau
LocationReims, France
Part ofCathedral of Notre-Dame, Former Abbey of Saint-Rémi and Palace of Tau, Reims
CriteriaCultural: i, ii, vi
Reference601-002
Inscription1991 (15th session)
Coordinates49°15′11″N 4°02′04″E
Location of Palace of Tau in France
Hall of the Tau

History

A large Gallo-Roman villa still occupied the site of the palace in the 6th and 7th centuries, and later became a Carolingian palace. The first documented use of the name dates to 1131, and derives from the plan of the building, which resembles the letter Τ (tau, in the Greek alphabet). Most of the early building has disappeared: the oldest part remaining is the chapel, from 1207. The building was largely rebuilt in Gothic style between 1498 and 1509, and modified to its present Baroque appearance between 1671 and 1710 by Jules Hardouin-Mansart and Robert de Cotte. It was damaged by a fire on 19 September 1914, and not repaired until after the Second World War.

The Palace was the residence of the kings of France before their coronation in Notre-Dame de Reims. The king was dressed for the coronation at the palace before proceeding to the cathedral; afterwards, a banquet was held at the palace. The first recorded coronation banquet was held at the palace in 990, and the most recent in 1825.

The palace has housed the Musée de l'Œuvre since 1972, displaying statuary and tapestries from the cathedral, together with the remains of the cathedral treasury and other objects associated with the coronation of the French kings.

The Palace of Tau, together with the Cathedral of Notre-Dame and the former Abbey of Saint-Remi, became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991. It attracts around 100,000 visitors each year.


  • The Crowning of the Virgin Mary, original gable of the central portal of the cathedral of Reims.
  • Statue of Abraham from the south portal, 1215.
  • Tapestry from the Song of Songs cycle.
  • Tapestry from the Life of the Virgin, 16th c.
  • Tapestry from the Life of the Virgin, 16th c.
  • Tapestry from the Life of Christ.
gollark: That's the generally-Lua things, CC has other ones, and no.
gollark: Lua functions or shell commands?
gollark: No, take out the "*".
gollark: When you do `if input == "Leon"` you haven't actually read any input.
gollark: You forgot to `read` before the Leon check bit.

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.