Database: Église St. Gervais-St. Protais / Place d'Orme

Named after the twin martyrs Gervasius and Protavius, for 300 years this beautiful church looked out over a huge ancient elm ("orme") that gave shade to creditors resolving their affairs in the middle ages. On the site of an ancient basilica, the current church was first built in 1494 with the Greco-Roman façade added in 1616. Voltaire, no religious enthusiast, proclaimed the church to be a masterpiece. Chopped down under the Revolution (which preferred the trees of Liberty), the elm was recycled into gun carriages. The church itself is now an animated place of worship, with a very active congregation of nuns.