Plan Fenêtre Chapel

Introduction

Suspended between woods and pastures, along the ancient path that connected the village of Rosier to the parish of Issogne, the Chapel of Plan Fenêtre discreetly watches over the ridge separating two human and natural slopes. Built in 1777 by the inhabitants of Grand Rosier, it was dedicated to Our Lady of Mercede but over time has become a centre of popular devotion for Saints Anne and Joachim, celebrated every year on 26 July with an open-air mass followed by enchantment.

A small sacred building balanced between popular art, community memory and mountain silences.

Description

The chapel is located at Plan Fenêtre, straddling the parishes of Champorcher and Issogne, in a panoramic position between the two villages of Rosier, along a section of the path that can still be walked. The surrounding environment is dominated by broadleaf and fir forests, with open views of the middle Dora Baltea Valley. Officially founded on 11 April 1777 by some village families (Brun, Perrier, Jory-Dougier and Perruchon), the chapel was already 'nouvellement érigée' in a deed of January of the same year. The work was entrusted to the master mason Jean Albert of Issime, an esteemed craftsman who was also later entrusted with the reconstruction of the chapel at Chardonney. Conceived as a place of community worship, it was immediately equipped with liturgical furnishings and fittings, a sign of the active participation of the inhabitants.

The building is simple and harmonious, built in stone and wood according to traditional local techniques. The interior has a refined pictorial decoration, dating back to the 1878-79 restoration: floral racemes, sacred hearts, doves and trompe-l'œil curtains embellish the vaults and walls with a taste typical of popular Alpine Baroque. This cycle is attributed to Antonio Sogno, a Canavese painter already active in other chapels in the area. Among the most significant works are:

• a statue of St Anne teaching the Child Mary, sculpted by Parfait Lanaz (1853-1915), now kept in the central niche of the altar;
• two plaster statues of St. Barbara and St. Joseph;
• three 18th-century statues (the Virgin and Child, St. Grato and St. Jocund), today kept in the parish museum;
• a pair of period wax angels.

In 1994, the exterior plasterwork was restored and the roof was redone.

Although initially consecrated to Our Lady of Mercede, the chapel has, over time, become strongly linked to the cult of Saint Anne, a familiar and protective figure. Every 26 July, the saint's day, a mass is celebrated, attended by the faithful from Champorcher and Issogne, followed by the 'incanto', or charitable auction of gifts. This celebration keeps alive an ancient tradition, linked to the rhythm of the seasons, agricultural cycles and mountain spirituality.