The gnomon in Saint-Sulpice Church by Beausoleil Star this if you like it!

Eglise Saint Sulpice iis rather confusingly designated the second largest church in Paris by some writers and the third largest church by other writers. I'll let them fight it out. It is very large. There are several reasons to visit it. We love to go to the organ concerts there. In 1862, the current pipe organ, constructed by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, was added to the church and it is magnificent. It has 6600 pipes and five ranks and a sound that you can feel in your bones. Only the organ in Saint Eustache in Paris is larger. Saint Sulpice also has a gnomon specifically designed to determine the traditional date of Easter, which corresponded to the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. The device has a brass, north-south meridian running up through the middle of the obelisk, with a brass ball at the top and you can follow the brass line on the floor of the church. As you enter the church, to your right is the Angels' Chapel that has three murals by Delacroix. As you exit the church, you face Place Saint Sulpice that holds the beautiful Fontaine des Quatre Évêques (Four Bishops Fountain) or Fontaine Saint-Sulpice or Fountain of the Orators. It's one of my favorite fountains in Paris but in June it is covered by the many tents set up for the Poesie Market held there each year. This last June we got a few pictures before the Market went up but the water had already been turned off. Go in July through May if you want a good view.

Share