Church of Notre-Dame-la-Grande, Poitiers: Overall view, west facade

Both a collegial and parochial church. The plainly built 11th-century church comprises a nave abutted by very high aisles, which preclude all direct lighting of the central vessel. The clustered piers support pointed barrel vaults, and the whole is covered by a single roof. The west facade was replaced in the first half of the 12th century by the present screen fa\u00E7ade, flanked by two pierced bell-turrets, which are crowned by similar roofs to the principal bell-tower. The sculpture of the interior capitals (ca. 1050-1090) and the famous west fa\u00E7ade (ca. 1120-1140) represents two important phases in the development of Romanesque sculpture in Poitou.