Notre-Dame of Real Cathedral

Description

Notre-Dame du Réal cathedral is an architectural gem dating back to the 12th century: a must-see! Inside, you'll find treasures that bear witness to the influence of this vast archdiocese with its turbulent history.

Described by some historians as the most important monument in the French Alps, it served as a model for a large number of churches in the archdiocese. Until the French Revolution, Embrun was the religious centre or metropolis of a vast territory stretching down to the Mediterranean.
The cathedral also attracted huge numbers of pilgrims until the 16th century, thanks to a fresco considered to be miraculous.
Here, influences intermingle: Romanesque, Lombard and Gothic art. Imagine that the builders arrived from the other side of the Alps with their own know-how, quite different from what was being done in France at the time!