Port-en-Bessin-Huppain (Canton of Ryes, Calvados) Church of Saint-Pierre-d'Huppain

   The church of Saint-Pierre in Huppain was associated with the abbey of Cerisy-la-Forêt. The name of Huppain which is of Scandinavian origin preserves the memory of its donor. The nave and the tower are from the 12^th century, the choir with a flat chevet from the 13^th century. The west façade, with a central portal framed by two blind arches, simulating the presence of aisles, can be compared locally with a number of other edifices: such as Meuvaines, Formigny or Étreham. The tower built on the south wall of the choir is on three levels. A decoration of interleaved arches unfolds on its south side, on the second level. This decorative motif is rare in Normandy. Only a few other examples are known, on the chevet of the church of Courcy or on the dripstone of the façade of the church of Mouen.

Bibliography

- Caumont, Arcisse (de). - Statistique monumentale du Calvados, Hardel, Caen, 1859, T. II,p. 618 à 621
- Musset, Lucien. - Normandie romane. I : Basse-Normandie. Zodiaque, La Pierre-Qui-Vire, 1987, p. 34
- Les siècles romans en Basse-Normandie, Art de Basse-Normandie, n° 92, Printemps 1985, p. 104