On your left is the Museum of Sacred Art, easily spotted by its classical pale stone facade, a tall wrought-iron entrance gate, and the striking copper-green dome topped with a golden cross. It certainly looks like a church because, well, it used to be one. This is the former Church of Sainte-Anne.
The city of Dijon bought the property back in nineteen fifty to solve a very specific problem. Over the years, as Catholic religious reforms changed how mass was celebrated, centuries worth of relics, intricate silver chalices, and ornate liturgical garments, the specialized clothing worn by priests during worship, were suddenly left without a purpose. They were essentially unemployed artifacts.
A local priest named Canon Jean Marilier took it upon himself to save these orphaned treasures, officially opening this museum in nineteen eighty. He had a dual mission: to protect Burgundian religious art, and to preserve the everyday history of the female spiritual communities who once lived right here.
One of the absolute showstoppers of the collection is a massive altar created in sixteen seventy-five by sculptor Jean Dubois. It is a baldachin altar, meaning it features a grand canopy supported by pillars, crafted out of striking black marble and bronze. Now, as of January twenty twenty-four, the building closed its doors for major renovations, so the altar is currently getting some much-needed rest out of public view.
Since nineteen ninety-three, this space has been closely partnered with the former monastery next door. Take a moment to admire the architecture of that grand dome. Whenever you are ready, we can take a short walk to our next stop.
