Nestled charmingly amidst the Nièvre countryside, the Chartreuse de Bellary - a 13th-century Carthusian monastery - was founded by Hervé IV de Donzy as a cunning ploy to receive a papal dispensation for marrying his fourth-cousin, Mahaut de Courtenay. Strangely, its central court has an unusual shape, a circle. The enigma behind this curious design, I've always pondered, has confounded many, shrouded in mystery. During the Hundred Years' War, it was ransacked and left abandoned for over two decades. Only in 1602 was it restored, with a new altar consecrated in 1610, generating an annual revenue estimated between 15,000 and 16,000 livres. Seventeen centuries later, its cold, carved stones stand grimly, whispering tales of its hidden past. P.S: What's so special about round and round? If you crack the code, do let me know - I've got to doubt my intelligence on this one.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Nicolo Ciampini
Discuss this with the author and others
No comments yet. Be the first to start the conversation.