Notre-Dame de la Daurade
Introduction Notre-Dame de la Daurade. '''Notre-Dame de la Daurade''' is a basilica in Toulouse, France. It was established in 410 when Emperor Honorius allowed the conversion of pagan temples to Christianity. The original building of Notre-Dame de la Daurade was a temple dedicated to Apollo.
History During the 5th or 6th century a church was erected, decorated with golden mosaics; the current name derives from the antique name, “Deaurata”, (, gold). Linguistic evidence from inscriptions that accompanied the mosaics suggest that the church was in use by the Visigoths, who adhered to Arian Christianity, before coming into Catholic hands following the Battle of Vouillé in 507.It became a Benedictine monastery during the 9th century. After a period of decline starting in the 15th century, the basilica was demolished in 1761 to make way for the construction of Toulouse's riverside quays. The buildings were restored and a new church built, but the monastery was closed during the French Revolution, becoming a tobacco factory.The basilica had housed the shrine of a Black Madonna. The original icon was stolen in the fifteenth century, and its first replacement was burned by Revolutionaries in 1799 on the Place du Capitole. The icon presented today is an 1807 copy of the fifteenth century Madonna. Blackened by the hosts of candles, the second Madonna has been known since the sixteenth century as Notre Dame La Noire.The current edifice was built during the 19th century.The church has been listed as a ''Monument historique'' by the French Ministry of Culture; its organ has also been classified.Visigothic column from Notre Dame de la Daurade Toulouse carved 400 600 CE.jpg|Column from Notre-Dame de la Daurade, 5th centurySeven sided sanctuary of Notre Dame de la Daurade with niches.jpg|Seven-sided sanctuary of Notre Dame de la Daurade, with niches decorated with columns.Vierge noire de Toulouse.jpg|Altar of Black Madonna of ToulouseVierge noire de Toulouse 2.jpg|Black Madonna of ToulouseNotre-Dame de la Daurade - Orgues.jpg|Gallery organNotre-Dame de la Daurade - Orgues Choeur.jpg|Choir organNotre-Dame de de la Daurade - Fonts baptismaux.jpg|Baptismal font.Basilique Notre-Dame la Daurade, Fonts Baptismaux.jpg|Baptismal font.St Antoine de Padoue, Basilique Notre-Dame la Daurade.jpg|Anthony of Padua
Notes
Further reading * Weitzmann, Kurt, ed., '' Age of spirituality: late antique and early Christian art, third to seventh century'', no. 595, 1979, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York,