Tauriac - Saint-Etienne

A "villa Tauriaca" was given to the Bishop of Le Mans already in 585 by some Alderic. At that time probably a chapel existed here. The portal seen today dates to the 12th. century - and it is unusual, as it does have tympana in the flanking arches. Modifications were made, when the church got fortified in the 16th century, but meanwhile the portal is pretty much back to the original state.

This is the tympanum from the right arch. The stone and the carving style differ from all other carvings around. It seems to be older and may explain, that the expression "merovingian" somewhere. There is an inscription around the "Agnus Dei" and another one on the bottom, but other than "pax" I could not decipher any word.