We landed in Paris, rented a car, and made our way to Beauvais, the city famous for its Gothic cathedral and tapestry factory, so obviously the first thing on our itinerary was the Beauvais cathedral, Cathedrale St Pierre.
We parked at the bottom of the cathedral’s tall façade with a very large rose window and a myriad of buttresses. Parking was, surprisingly, free and easy to find. The houses surrounding the area near the cathedral seem to be Tudors with original bricks and roof shingles (what a scary thought!).
The cathedral dates back to the 10th, 13th, and 16th centuries and has been a national monument since 1840. Above the entrance gate, a beautiful stucco of the tree of Jesse is surrounded by Gothic vignettes. Inside the cathedral, it was very cold, even on a warm spring day. The jewel of the cathedral is the astronomic clock made between 1865 and 1868. The clock is supported by carved baroque columns. It consists of clocks of various sizes - at the top, the main clock has Jesus in the background, and each hour is represented by 1 of 12 apostles. The naives are very tall, and behind the altar, each chapel contains a small treasure: remains of the original frescoes on the walls and gorgeous 13th-century stained-glass windows in some and modern glass in others. Above the altar, the stained glass of saints at the top is original; below, the next level is modern. Judging by the beauty of the remaining frescoes, they must have been very beautiful in the 16th century. North and south transepts face each other, with beautiful rose windows and stained glass around them. Across from the altar is a large, rather modern organ. The cathedral was damaged during WWII and wonderfully restored; however, the original stained glass forever perished.
The west façade is very impressive, with tall, flamboyant gothic towers supporting another large rose window. Amazingly, the cathedral has no bell towers. One side of cathedral is supported by remains of the 3rd-century Gallo-Roman walls.
Another site in Beauvais not to be missed is the Galerie National des Tapisseries, with free entrance. A collection of 17th- and 18th-century tapestries on the first floor is magnificent; they are wonderfully restored pieces that now have the same bright colors as when they were originally made and each fit for a castle wall. On the second floor, you can see tapestries from mid-19th century and Art Nouveau, as well as 20th-century tapestries reminiscent of Jean Lurcat by his contemporaries of the 1950s.