The Notre-Dame-de-la-Nativity church of Bercy is located on Place Lachambeaudie, in the 12th arrondissement of the capital.
This building has had a turbulent history. A first church dedicated to Notre-Dame de Bon Secours was built in 1677 but soon fell into ruins and ended up being razed in 1821. Rebuilt from 1823, it was destroyed during the uprising of the Commune in 1870 and rebuilt again, on identical plans, a few years later. Then it was the floods of 1910 that affected the church, before bombing the nearby railroads partially damaged it in 1944 and finally a fire destroyed the floor and part of the furniture in 1982.
Dedicated to Notre-Dame-de-la-Nativité, it is restored in 1985.
Its basilical plan is sober, except for a classical style porch with a pediment and columns and Byzantine-inspired ornaments at the bedside.
Inside, however, the church is richly decorated and houses many paintings of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, including "Jesus and the Samaritan", "The Nativity", or "The assassination of St. Thomas Becket".
Also worth seeing is a small statue depicting Saint Emilion, a reference to the situation of the church in a neighborhood, Bercy, long known for its cellars, and a rare example of a pewter statue dated 1995 of Bon Larron, this bandit crucified at the same time as Jesus according to the Gospels.
Although now located in the middle of many traffic lanes, the church is worth a visit.
Open every day. Information on +33 1 43 07 86 51.
