Our project
Why restore the little Chapel:
Due to her condition, she is fragile and threatened!
The Chapel is part of the local architectural heritage which recalls the history of the hamlet of Fontchristianne, witness to an era and a know-how.
Heritage has value for its own characteristics and also for what it evokes and represents. If we wish to preserve it, it needs to be restored, protected, because the loss of heritage is the loss of a part of our identity.
We must preserve these chapels, fountains, wash houses and canals, otherwise what would our villages and towns be without this heritage?
Our view of the past and the future determines the choices we make about transmission to future generations.
Historical
(Search for Mrs. Véronique FAUCHER Heritage Service - Briançon)
Name:
The decoration of chapels and churches most often takes up in the main iconography the representation of the titular saint(s). The small chapel of Fontchristianne has a large altar painting which represents the Virgin and Child giving the rosary to Saint Joseph on the left and the scapular to Saint James on the right, these two saints being clearly identified by their own attributes. It can be assumed that one (or more) of these characters is the patron saint or patron saint of this chapel.
However, having not yet encountered any mention of this title, I propose to keep the name "small chapel" which allows both to refer to the small size of the building and to avoid confusion with the church of the hamlet which is sometimes also called a chapel.
Mention :
This small chapel is not mentioned in general or more specific works that deal with Briançon and its hamlets. Canon Jacques in Les chapelles rurales des Hautes Alpes, 1956, only mentions the large "chapel dedicated to the Holy Spirit" for the hamlet of Fontchristianne.
The document below (Municipal Archives) dated 28 Brumaire in IV (November 19, 1795), extract from the deliberations (code 1D4 An II-An IV):
" ...we choose for the exercise of our worship the building located in our hamlet, formerly the chapel of the Holy Spirit..."
tends to suggest that there was only one building intended for worship in the hamlet: the chapel of the Holy Spirit, today called the chapel of Saint-Joseph and Saint-Esprit.
But it is true that the little chapel is so tiny that it could not have been considered as a possible choice for the exercise of worship by all the inhabitants, and there was therefore no need to mention it.
Research carried out in the 1539 land register and in the 1481 land register (AM) has yielded nothing so far.
Track your trail and status over time:
This small chapel was long considered to be private property belonging to a family from Fontchristianne. It recently turned out that it was in fact communal. Where did this conviction of the private nature of the chapel come from? Did the family at some point restore/rebuild this chapel, family memory subsequently confusing the restoration with ownership? Another hypothesis: was the small chapel, originally private, national property during the Revolution, like so many religious buildings? Once the revolutionary turmoil had passed, previous habits were resumed.
Dating:
To date, no document allows us to precisely date its construction.
We know that it already existed in 1735 since it is represented on the relief plan of Briançon (photo below).
This photo is of the original relief plan. It shows the small chapel located and oriented as it is today. (On the copy of the relief plan kept in the courtroom of the tribunal, it is shown offset towards the path that crosses the hamlet.)
It is found on the Napoleonic land register in 1840 (photos below) in the same location (plot 903). It is registered as “communal”.
Furniture:
In addition to various small furniture items, the small chapel preserves a large painting (height = 154 cm; width = 127 cm) placed behind the altar and fixed by metal legs. This painting (oil on canvas) represents the Virgin giving the rosary to Saint Joseph on the left and the Child giving the scapular to Saint James on the right.
Dated 1846 and corresponding to the style and workmanship of the paintings of this period in Briançonnais, it bears witness to the religious sentiment of the inhabitants of Fontchristianne in the 19th century.
This painting, with its very thin and flaking paint layer and gaps, requires competent restoration, entrusted to an approved professional.
Photo Gallery (today)
The photos show the state of the small Chapel: the building, the vault, the sheet metal roof, the painting (oil on canvas), the wooden altar and the larch door, the upper part of which is made up of turned bars, probably belonging to a primitive claustra taken from the masonry...
Restored canvas depicting the Virgin giving the rosary to Saint Joseph on the left and the Child giving the scapular to Saint James on the right.
The restoration of the canvas was carried out by the VICKIE AQUAVIVA restoration workshop in Grenoble
(from May 2023 to June 2024). After spending a few months in Vickie Acquaviva's studio getting a makeover, the canvas of the small chapel of Fontchristianne returned to Briançon and since July 26, it has been carefully stored at the city's Palais de Justice while waiting to return to its setting.
Tomorrow
NDA Architecture Firm - Nathalie d'ARTIGUES
Fontchristianne: restoring a historic chapel on the eve of the 2030 Winter Olympics
A few years before the 2030 French Alps Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, Briançon is preparing to host one of the emblematic projects of this international event with the development of the Fort des Têtes into an Olympic village.
At the foot of this major fortress of the Vauban defensive system, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, lies a more discreet but equally precious place for local history: the chapel of Saint-Joseph and Saint-Jacques of Fontchristianne.
Built in the heart of a district intimately linked to Briançon's military and religious history, this chapel bears witness to several centuries of mountain life, popular faith, and attachment to heritage. Today, it requires significant restoration work to be preserved for future generations.
The Fontchristianne Heritage Association has taken on the mission of saving this building and passing it on in the best possible condition. This citizen mobilization comes at a particularly symbolic time for our region.
The 2030 Olympic Games will offer Briançon exceptional international visibility. Thousands of visitors, journalists, volunteers, and athletes will discover the unique heritage of our city. Beyond the sporting infrastructure, this event represents a unique opportunity to highlight the cultural and historical riches that define the Briançon region.
The restoration of the Saint-Joseph and Saint-Jacques chapel is fully in line with this dynamic. It contributes to the enhancement of the Fontchristianne district, a true historical gateway to the Fort des Têtes, and to the cultural legacy that our region wishes to leave long after the Olympic flame has been extinguished.
We hope that the 2030 Games will also be about heritage, memory and transmission.
The association is launching an appeal for the mobilization of everyone: residents, businesses, patrons and local authorities, so that this restoration project can be completed before the Olympic deadline.
Preserving the chapel of Fontchristianne means preserving a part of the soul of Briançon.