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The Town
France > Languedoc > Southern > Narbonne > The Town

One of the few Roman remnants in Narbonne is the Horreum, at the north end of rue Rouget-de-l'Isle (April–Sept daily 9.30am–12.15pm & 2–6pm; Oct–March Tues–Sun 10am–noon & 2–5pm; €4.57, valid for three days and including entry to the museums in the Palais des Archévêques and Notre-Dame-de-Lamourguié), an unusual underground grain store divided into a series of small chambers leading off a rectangular passageway. At the opposite end of the same street, close to the attractive tree-lined banks of the Canal de la Robine, is Narbonne's other principal attraction, the enormous Gothic Cathédrale St-Just-et-St-Pasteur. With the Palais des Archévêques and its forty-metre keep, it forms a massive pile of masonry that completely dominates the restored lanes of the old town, and – like the cathedral of Béziers – can be seen for kilometres around. In spite of its size, it's actually only the choir of a much more ambitious church, whose construction was halted to avoid wrecking the city walls. The immensely tall interior has some beautiful fourteenth-century stained glass in the chapels on the northeast side of the apse and imposing Aubusson tapestries – one of the most valuable tapestries is kept in the Salle du Trésor (daily: July–Sept 10am–6pm, Oct–June 2–6pm; €1.52), along with a small collection of ecclesiastical treasures. In summer the high north tower is open for a panoramic view of the surrounding vineyards (June–Sept daily 10am–5pm; Oct–May by appointment only, tel 04.68.33.70.18; €1.52).

The adjacent place de l'Hôtel-de-Ville is dominated by the great towers of St-Martial, the Madeleine and Bishop Aycelin's keep. From there the passage de l'Ancre leads through to the Palais des Archévêques (Archbishops' Palace), housing a fairly ordinary museum of art and a good archeology museum (both museums have the same hours and tariffs as the Horreum), whose interesting Roman remains include a massive 3.5-metre wood and lead ship's rudder, and a huge mosaic. Across into the southern part of the town, beyond the bisecting Canal de la Robine and the built-over Pont des Marchands, the small early Christian crypt of the church of St-Paul, off rue de l'Hôtel-Dieu (Mon–Sat 9am–noon & 2–6pm; free), is worth a quick look, as is the deconsecrated church of Notre-Dame-de-Lamourguié which now houses a collection of Roman sculptures and epigraphy (same hours and tariff as the Horreum).


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