Saint Nazaire Church

Saint-Nazaire church, founded in Sanary-sur-Mer in 1570, is a local landmark. It is renowned for its frescoes and organ, offering a space for meditation and art.

- THE FORMER ROMANESQUE CHURCH -

In France, the Renaissance was a period of repopulation and reconstruction, conducive to the founding of large buildings. Establishing a church in the heart of a village was not without meaning, and was generally part of the ecclesiastical authorities' desire to take their place in the urban space. A town with its own church is a town that exists. Through its festivals and rituals, it marks the center of village life. The church's physical appearance also marks the landscape, signalling the presence of a town; without it, without a steeple that can be seen in the distance, without a steeple that can be heard ringing out services, the town is not visible.

In Sanary, the first church lasted until the end of the 19th century, when Michel Pacha decided to build a new one on the same site.



- A NEW CHURCH FOR SANARY -

The architecture of the new church features a long stone spire atop a bell tower decorated with Lombardy bands, dentils and rows of corbels. At each corner of its base stand the 4 evangelists: the eagle of St. John, the lion of St. Mark, the ox of St. Luke and the angel of Matthew. Organized around a main nave, two side aisles and a choir joined by a transept, the new church is built on two levels. When Sanary separated from Ollioules in the 17th century, part of the population remained loyal to its attachment to the neighboring commune. To prevent adversaries from meeting, the new church had two entrances: the “supporters” of Ollioules entered from the west, while the “partisans” of Saint-Nazaire's independence entered from the south.


- THE FRESCOES -

Inside the church, you can admire the frescoes painted in 2006 by artist Jean Baptiste Garrigou.

This iconography follows in the footsteps of Michel Pacha: Romanesque-inspired architecture with a Byzantine structure. In this spirit, the frescoes were painted directly onto the walls, respecting the symbolism and progression of the Christian faith. Each stage of Christ's life is represented, and the frescoes are an illustration of the Book of the Gospel.

The choir concentrates on illustrations from the Old Testament, while the central aisle represents Christ's earthly life, from the wedding feast at Cana to the Last Supper. The transept symbolizes the passage from death to life, while the choir enthrones Christ in glory, spreading the message of the Gospel.



- BELL TOWER HERITAGE -

The church tower features 4 bells: a 1734 Monuments Historiques bell from the former Romanesque church, an 1829 bell sponsored by Count Estienne de Grâce and two 1892 bells, one donated by Michel Pacha in memory of his two deceased children and the other sponsored by Count and General Estienne Hugues Rose.



- THE QUOIRIN ORGAN -

In addition to the religious services held in the building, the church is a privileged concert venue, notably for its organ, with which it has always been equipped. In the old church, there were two organs, one built by Charles Gazeau and the other by John Abbey. The latter organ, which had been rebuilt many times, fell into disuse. A new organ with exceptional acoustic qualities and over 24 stops was installed in 2007. Built by organ builder Pascal Quoirin and Jean Decavèle, technical advisor to the French Ministry of Culture, it offers improved sound distribution in the nave.

Today, the Saint-Nazaire organ is one of the most renowned in the Var region, and regularly hosts concerts and artists, including the “Festival d'art Sacré”, held every year in the first week of July.