Saint-Trophime d'Arles
| Church of St. Trophime Cathédrale Saint-Trophime d'Arles |
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Portal of Church of Saint Trophime
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| Basic information | |
| Location |
Arles,  France
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| Geographic coordinates | Coordinates: 43°40′36″N 4°37′41″E / 43.67667°N 4.62806°E |
| Affiliation | Roman Catholic Church |
| Rite | Roman Rite |
| Region | Bouches-du-Rhône |
| Country | France |
| Ecclesiastical or organizational status | Cathedral |
| Status | Active |
| Architectural description | |
| Architectural type | church |
| Groundbreaking | 12th century |
| Completed | 15th century |
The Church of St. Trophime (French: Cathédrale Saint-Trophime d'Arles) (Trophimus) is a Roman Catholic church and former cathedral located in the city of Arles, in the Bouches-du-Rhône Department of southern France. It was built between the 12th century and the 15th century, and is in the Romanesque architectural tradition. The sculptures over the church's portal, particularly the Last Judgement, and the columns in the adjacent cloister, are considered some of the finest examples of Romanesque sculpture.
The church was built upon the site of the 5th century basilica of Arles, named for St. Stephen. In the 15th century a Gothic choir was added to the Romanesque nave.
At the time the Cathedral was built, in the late 11th century or early 12th century, Arles was the second-largest city in Provence, with a population of between 15,000 and 20,000 people. It had a busy port on the Rhône, and two new cities, on either side of the old Roman town, surrounded by a wall. It was at least formally independent as the Kingdom of Arles, and it had attracted many religious orders, including the Knights Hospitalier, the Knights Templar and mendicant orders, which had built a number of churches within the town.
The apse and the transept were probably built first, in the late 11th century, and the nave and bell tower were completed in the second quarter of the 12th century.: The Romaneque church had a long central nave 20 meters high; lower collateral aisles on either side; a transept supporting the square central bell tower; and a chevet behind the altar at the east end with a hemispherical vault. The windows are small and high up on the nave, above the level of the collateral aisles.
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