MEDIEVAL SCULPTOR, French
(active 1090s in Charlieu)

Tympanum of the west portal

c. 1090
Stone
Saint-Fortunat, Charlieu

The west portal of the former priory church of Saint-Fortunat in Charlieu (Loire) is the oldest remaining columned portal in which all parts of the portal are decorated with sculptures. Built in the second half of the eleventh century, Saint-Fortunat was torn down after the French Revolution. All that remain are the western section with the tympanum, and the narthex in front of it, built in the first half of the twelfth century with two openings to the north.

The entire height of the tympanum, dating from about 1090, is taken up with the figure of Christ enthroned with a cruciform halo in a mandorla, supported by two angels. Charlieu is the first place where Christ appears "in Majesty" in a mandorla, a means of representation which was later used for the Last Judgment.