Conques Treasury - Begon's lantern

Conques Lanterne Begon

Also from the 12th century, this reliquary of Abbot Begon recalls the lantern towers erected in the middle of cemeteries and which symbolized, when illuminated, the passage of souls to the hereafter. The lantern turrets on churches in the Poitou-Charente area had this symbolic function also, but in addition served a very practical purpose, that of offering a beacon to benighted travelers.

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