Tuesday, March 11, 2008

The Doors

A number of artists are posting something to do with doors today (Wednesday, March 12th) - a poem, a photo, a painting... or something else creative!  At the end of my posting, you will find a list of links to the blogs of others who are participating in this project. Be sure to check out what they have done!

Last summer, my husband and I flew to Quebec City, in the province of Quebec, Canada to meet up with his sisters and spouses for a 5 day vacation. We stayed in a beautiful heritage house Bed and Breakfast 15 minutes outside of Quebec City, and travelled around the area exploring the amazing historical aspects of this part of Canada. This picture is of one of the copper doors at the entrance to the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre which is about 30 kilometres (19 miles) east of Quebec City. Click on the picture to see a close up of the figures and art work around the edges.
 
The first Catholic chapel  built on this site was completed in 1658. A second and third church were built on this site before the first basilica was built and opened in 1876. This building was destroyed by fire on March 29, 1922. The present day basilica was built on the same site.


This church is well known for the miracles which supposedly have occurred even as it was being constructed. Just after entering the church, there are 2 huge pillars which are filled with racks of crutches, canes and braces from people who reported being healed. About half a million pilgrims visit this place every year - perhaps also hoping for healing.

In addition to these incredible copper doors, the church boasts 240 stained glass windows, which beautifully diffuse the outside light. The ends of the pews are carved with figures and animals, depicting the story of creation. There are also a number of 18th century sculptures, artworks, and geometrical designs and mosaics throughout the 2 levels of this massive building. 

If you ever visit Quebec City, be sure to take the 30 minute drive out to see this historical building. It is well worth the effort!

And now, here are the others whose blogs you  should visit. :-)




23 comments:

Barrie said...

The copper doors are incredible!

I've never seen anything like them.

Gemma Wiseman said...

Those doors somehow remind me of an incredible olde worlde lid of a treasure chest.

Just awesome!

virtual nexus said...

Beautiful tooling on these doors; and
and I've never seen anything like them either...! Great post.

Anonymous said...

"Your" door is amazing.
I've never seen anything like it :-)

Anonymous said...

I've never seen a copper door. Thank you for sharing this! It is amazing
What fun seeing everyones doors!

Constance

Anonymous said...

Beautiful Joanne...you must be aware of the fact that you are a writer.

Christine Mercer-Vernon said...

thank you for sharing the history of this beautiful church. my jaw dropped when i saw the photo of that copper door! unbelievable! i can't even imagine what it looked like in person!!

Jennifer Thermes said...

Wow-- I've never seen a copper door either. It's amazing how much artistry can go in to something as seemingly simple as a door. Thanks for sharing!

Frank Gardner said...

Beautiful door joanne, and I love that you wrote the story to go along with it. So many doors have stories behind them and I bet a lot of doors would have good stories to tell if they could talk.

Unknown said...

Beautiful photographs and bit of history.

Thank you!

Leslie said...

Wow! Those doors are fantastic, and I love that you shared the history.

Sara at Come Away With Me said...

Thank you for sharing these doors! That first one is especially amazing...so much wonderful symbolism there.

Ambera said...

Terrific door choices! Stunning cathedral.

Sherry said...

These copper doors are beautiful -- the French knew what they were doing when they came to Canada!

Merisi said...

Beautiful craftmanship, thank you for sharing this treasure!
The door reminds me of the Baptisterium next to the Florentine Cathedral which has three huge gilded bronze doors created by Italian masters in the 14th and 15th Century.

Anonymous said...

How wonderful, the work put into these doors! Thanks for sharing them with us.

Best,
Paz

Barbara said...

Some very artistic doors. Thanks for visiting.

Karen Cole said...

Beautiful choice for your doors.
I love tooled metal.

Beautiful paintings as well.

Thanks for your visit.

Willow said...

The cathedral photos are amazing. I love the doors, so similar to the doors at St Peter's in The Vatican.

Thanks for visitng my blog. Hasn't this been fun?? I've had a compulsion to photograph doors for YEARS.

Jack Riddle said...

Terrific post. Thanks, Jack

Lea said...

Those copper doors are amazing... there is just something so incredible when crossing the threshold into a Gothic cathedral... Thank you for taking us on your journey and sharing this door with us all!

Jean Victory said...

The copper doors are beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Lovely doors!