La Vieille Charité: Pierre Puget's Baroque Cloistered Sanctuary
Why is it significant?
Pass through the arched stone gateway of La Vieille Charité into a magnificent, peaceful rectangular courtyard framed by three tiers of arched stone arcades made of pink and golden limestone from the nearby quarries of Couronne.
Key Facts
| Place | La Vieille Charité: Pierre Puget's Baroque Cloistered Sanctuary |
|---|---|
| Address | 2 Rue de la Charité, 13002 Marseille |
| Geo Coordinates | 43.30030, 5.36810 |
| Part of Walk | Marseille of Greeks & Pirates: Vieux-Port, Le Panier, and Sea Fortresses |
| Generated | Generated |
Pass through the arched stone gateway of La Vieille Charité into a magnificent, peaceful rectangular courtyard framed by three tiers of arched stone arcades made of pink and golden limestone from the nearby quarries of Couronne. In the center of the courtyard stands an extraordinary ovoid baroque chapel crowned by an egg-shaped dome, designed by native Marseille sculptor and architect Pierre Puget.
Begun in sixteen seventy-one under a royal edict from King Louis the Fourteenth, this monumental complex was not built as a hospital, but as a workhouse to round up and house the city's beggars, homeless, and orphans, providing them with food, shelter, and compulsory weaving labor.
In the nineteen forties, the building fell into total neglect and was slated for demolition. The visionary Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier saw its sublime proportions, sounded an international alarm, and successfully campaigned to save Puget's masterpiece, which today houses the Museum of Mediterranean Archaeology.
Exit west toward the sea cliffs to behold the striped towers of the Cathédrale de la Major.