"The good mother!" or even "the Lady of the guard"

Our Lady of the guard is part of the life of OM... assigned his sentences, it is associated to its joys, and when it is absent too long of Marseille, on the way back, she seen first and who is always there for us is welcome.

His monumental the Virgin statue (erected in 1869 by Lequesne and the Christofle House), which its steeple dominates the city, seems to keep and protect any scourge Marseille.
A metal staircase in colimasson allows to mount inside the statue and reach his face, but of course it is not accessible to the public, and it would be, it would have to be very brave and do not suffer from Vertigo!

Admire the 360 ° view on Marseille, that is simply breathtaking! ... and the breath, there often in Marseille... If you have the chance to ride a day of Mistral at Notre Dame, you will have a unique, generous colors brightness, and a Mediterranean Sea which countless sheep highlight deep up to blue the horizon.

This can not be invented: the architect of our Lady of the guard is called Henri-Jacques Espérandieu!
He was also the designer and Director of the Longchamp Palace at the same time water tower where arrives the waters of the Canal de Marseille, Museum of fine arts and museum of natural history. He participated in the construction of the Major Cathedral. Having much work for Marseille, a street near the Longchamp Palace bears his name, as well as a ship of the line Marseille - the islands of the Frioul.

The architecture of Notre Dame is romano-Byzantine style. We notice now that arcades are Romanesque. But what are the characteristics of byzantine inspiration?
-Byzantine art like the polychrome IE the mixture of colors.
Our Lady of the guard, the outer stones are white stones, and green stones.
Inside the Basilica, there is an alternation between the white Carrara marble and red marble from Brignoles in the pillars. And we find the same duality of color in the stucco of the arcades.
This polychromy gives the building a joyful character.
-Byzantine art like cupolas
Our Lady of the guard, a fairly deep dome dominates the chorus: you can see from the outside. And the vault of the nave consists of three domes much shallower. They are not visible from the outside, hidden as they are by a roof, but they are real.
-Byzantine art like the mosaics
In the Basilica, there are many: in the chorus, within the great dome and the vault of the nave and lateral chapels. Only the large side walls are not covered.
There are little shrines where the surface of the mosaic panels represents as a proportion of the total area of the inner walls.
-Byzantine art love everything especially the Golden mosaics. By reflecting light, they create a very festive atmosphere. The bottom of the great mosaic dominating the altar is golden, the Interior of the great dome has a lot of gold tesserae and the three domes of the vault of the nave are entirely Golden.

The stunning Basilica of our Lady of the guard surprises us by the beauty of its golden mosaics. It also gives us a curiosity that are "ex-voto", testimony of recognition made by many donors to thank the Virgin Mary for saving, for example a shipwreck or a storm (tables, models,...). You can also admire the statue of money of the high altar (Chanuel 1839).

There is a great contrast between the Basilica and the crypt. On one side, a building high enough and very ornate, on the other, a building dug into the rock, very low and unadorned, except for a few tents. The great counting of the place offers an environment very conducive to prayer. All evangelical simplicity.

For tours, they are free and very interesting, call if you want to be a part.

The restaurant "living water", located on the third level, and its "missionaries of the Immaculate workers" welcomes you from 08:00 to 17:30 except Monday.
It is restaurant is again accessible to the public. By the stairs by the new lift as well. Note: it is advisable to book especially on Saturday and Sunday. If you accompany persons with reduced mobility in wheelchair, advertise it when booking will be reserved for an easy table access.

The store offers a large assortment of religious items: medals, rosaries, statuettes, 'memories' and postcards. The Department library, bibles, religious and tourist books and a selection of publications for children. The store is open daily from 9:00 at 17:30 from October to March and until 18:30 April to October.

Car parks for parking during the visit.

Open on sunday