Roland Doré

Roland Doré was a 17th-century sculptor and his workshop or "atelier" produced many sculptures for the enclos paroissiaux or "parish closes" of Brittany. In particular his work can be seen on calvaries and in the church's south porch. He was born in 1616 and died in 1660. Little detail of his life is known but it is recorded that he practised as an architect in Landerneau, as well as running his workshop, and was recorded as calling himself the "Sculpteur du Roi" (The King's sculptor). His works, all of an ecclesiastical nature, are mainly located in Léon and the north of Cornouaille. They can be taken as works by Doré's workshop rather than just by Doré himself. Brittany is particularly rich in calvaries, some of a very elaborate nature. In most cases the calvary involves both the crucifixion cross and side crosses or gibbets bearing the good and the bad robbers. Below this, on the crosspieces, were statues of those present at the crucifixion. A feature of Breton calvaries is that most of the statues were carved as a pair (géminées in French) and effectively back to back. Doré's output was prodigious and he worked on nine monuments in Saint-Thégonnec, five in Logonna-Daoulas and four in the parish of Plougastel-Daoulas. He also received four commissions to work in Hanvec, three in Guiclan, Irvillac and Lampaul-Guimiliau and two commissions in Cléden-Cap-Sizun, Hôpital-Camfrout, Landerneau, La Martyre, Plabennec, Pleyben, Plogonnec, Saint-Nic, Saint-Servais and Saint-Urbain.

Main works Brittany is divided into five departments: Côtes-d'Armor, Finistère, Ille-et-Vilaine, Loire-Atlantique and Morbihan. Dore's works will here be recorded per department and for Finistère a further subdivision into its arrondissements of Morlaix, Châteaulin, Quimper and Brest.

Works by Doré in the Arrondissement of Brest Doré is attributed with the following works in the Brest arrondissement.

Hôpital-Camfrout For the Église Notre-Dame de Bonne Nouvelle in Hôpital-Camfrout, Doré sculpted a Christ sauveur and also worked on the Croix du Run and the Calvaire de Troan.

Plabennec The Locmaria-Lan chapel in Plabennec holds a Dorė statue of the Virgin Mary and Child in a niche in the bell-tower and the atelier are credited with carving the crucifix on the Calvaire de Scaven.

La Martyre La Martyre's Croix de Kerlavarec, of which only the shaft of the cross remains, is attributed to Dorė.

Plougastel-Daoulas In Plougastel-Daoulas, the Doré atelier executed statues for the Saint-Guénolé chapel's calvary which has the date 1654 inscribed on the pedestal supporting the cross. The statues are of Guénolé reversed with the Virgin Mary, the crucifix reversed with the Virgin Mary holding the baby Jesus and Saint Peter reversed with John the Evangelist.

La Forest-Landerneau Some stairs separate the upper part of the cemetery in La Forest-Landerneau from the lower section and these are decorated with Dorė sculptures of a saint in bishop's attire and Catherine of Alexandria.

Lannilis In 1630, Doré worked on the calvary at Kerosven in Lannilis. He sculpted Christ on the cross and statues of John the Baptist, John the Evangelist and the Virgin Mary.

Dirinon There is a calvary called "La Croix-Rouge" at Dirinon which has Doré statues of Christ on the cross and back to back statues depicting John the Evangelist /Saint Roch and the Virgin Mary/Saint Sebastian.

Saint-Renan On the Saint-Renan "Croix de Quillimerrien" is a statue of the Virgin Mary which is attributed to the Dorė atelier.

"La croix du Cranou" This calvary in the Cranou forest near Hanvec has sadly lost its cross. It dates to 1627. It had served the Saint-Conval chapel which is now in ruins.

Irvillac At Irvillac there is a fountain by the Notre-Dame-de-Lorette chapel with a calvary by Doré. This dates to 1644 and whilst the figure of Christ has been mutilated and lost both arms and legs, the back to back ("géminées") statues of the Virgin Mary/Saint Peter and John the Evangelist/Saint Yves have survived, as have the depictions of the two robbers crucified with Jesus. The calvary is known as the "Coatnan" calvary. At Irvillac, Doré also worked on the calvary by the Locmélar chapel and also worked on a statue of Saint John in the sacristy of the Irvillac Église Saint-Pierre.

There is another Doré calvary at Clécnunan near Irvillac. This features Christ on the cross, a mutilated depiction of a saint and statues "géminées" of the Virgin Mary and Saint Peter which are also badly damaged. Another calvary near Saint Urbain was restored by Doré in 1630 and that is the calvary at Quinquis. Erected in 1518 and having a height of 5 metres, the depiction of Christ on the Cross is backed by a Pietà.

Works by Doré in the Arrondissement of Morlaix Doré is attributed with the following works in the Morlaix arrondissement.

Cléder The Dorė atelier executed the crucifix on the Croix de Kerzuoc'h in Cléder.

Plougonven Doré completed a statue of Saint Joseph for the Plougonven parish church, the Église Saint-Yves. It can be seen in the north part of the nave. The statue had originally been in the Kerloaguen chapel. The saint holds a palm leaf in one hand and a closed book in the other.

Guiclan In the south porch of the Guiclan parish church is a Doré sculpture of Christ on the cross which came from Kerizamel. There are also the remains of a calvary by the Dorė atelier in the Église Saint Germain ossuary.

Plounéour-Ménez For the south porch of the Saint-Yves church in Plounéour-Ménez, Doré executed two statues of John the Evangelist and Saint Thomas. He also worked on part of the calvary with back-to-back statues of the Virgin Mary and Saint Peter and John the Evangelist and Saint Paul. The atelier also worked on the Kersimonet cross executing a statue of the Virgin Mary with child. Finally in Plounéour-Ménez, the Dorė atelier are credited with execution of a calvary at the "manoir du Penhoat". On the fountain there Saint Francis of Assisi and Saint James the Greater's statues are all that remain of a calvary. The top of the calvary has a cross depicting Jesus whilst the crosses of the two robbers are placed on two columns rising up from the base of the calvary. Four angels surround Jesus' cross collecting his blood in chalices. Two do so from the wounds to his heart and hands and the other two collect the blood from his feet. On the first crosspiece (croisillion) are statues of two cavaliers on horseback, one of whom, Saint Longinus, was the soldier who pierced Jesus' side with a lance. These stand on either side of the reverse side of the cross which depicts Christ leaning on the column where he was whipped ("Christ à la colonne"). On the next crosspiece are statues (geminées or back to back) of John the Evangelist and Saint Yves and the Virgin Mary and Saint Peter these on either side of a depiction of Mary with child and a Pietà. On the base of the calvary are representations of different scenes from the Passion and the Resurrection; the descent from the cross, the burial and the resurrection. We then have sculptures showing Jesus being tied up, Jesus blindfolded and being manhandled by two soldiers, Jesus being whipped, an "Ecce Homo", Pontius Pilate washing his hands after passing sentence on Jesus, Jesus meeting Veronica whilst carrying the Cross, and in a small niche, a statue of St Thégonnec and his cart. All this was the work of "Le Maître de Saint-Thégonnec" in 1610 and several years later Doré was to add the depiction of Christ being mocked. The figures wear the dress of the reign of Henry IV. Doré also worked on the nearby "Calvaire de Broustou" in 1632 and the "Croix de Pennavern". The "Calvaire de Broustou" is 4 metres high and the Pennavern cross has a height of 5 metres and dates to 1647. Doré also worked on the south porch of Saint-Thégonnec's Église Notre-Dame. There is also a Doré sculpture at Le Kelf where there is a depiction of the Virgin Mary in a small niche. This dates to 1652. Another calvary at Coslen was restored by Doré in 1622.

Saint-Servais

The enclos at Saint-Servais in Finistère is known for the quality of its bell tower and ossuary. Saint-Servais had been part of Plounéventer but became an independent commune in 1792. Of the sculptures on the calvary only the crucifix and the Christ aux liens are by Doré. Also at Saint-Servais the "Croix de Brėtiès known as the Croas-Vossoc is by Dorė. The calvary has a crucifix and a shield inscribed "IAC BRAS 1640".

Eglise Saint-Pierre de Pleyber-Christ In the south porch of Pleyber-Christ's Saint Pierre church we see a depiction of Christ and the twelve apostles. The church has been declared a "Monument Historique" since 1914 and is rich in furnishings. The apostles appear in niches in the porch and above the door, Doré was responsible for all the statues of Jesus and the apostles. For the Kervern calvary known as the "Croix de Kervern", the Dorė atelier executed statues of the Virgin Mary and Saint Marguerite.

Bodilis Bodilis is one of the communes of the arrondissement of Morlaix. It lies six kilometres northwest of Landivisiau. In the "Enclos paroissial de Bodilis", the Église Notre Dame, Doré executed the statue of Notre Seigneur bénissant (Christ sauveur) which stands in the south porch as well as the Angel of the Annunciation placed in a niche in the left side buttress of that porch. In the Angel of the Annunciation composition, Dorė includes a vase of lilies which is inscribed "ECCE:ANCILLA:D(OMI)NI:FIAT:MIHI:SECVNDVM:VERBVM:TVVM". He also sculpted the elaborate hexagonal baptismal font which he decorated with sculptures of Matthew the Apostle, Mark the Apostle, God holding his dead son in his arms, St Gregory the Great, John the Evangelist, Saint Peter and the bishop St Ambrose of Milan. All the Bodilis works were carved from kersanton stone. See Bodilis Parish close. The fountain at the Pont an Ilis situated in the "Kerrous" district of Bodilis includes Doré's 120 cm sculpture of the Virgin Mary and because the sculptor used the dark stone Kersanton, it became known to local people as the "Vierge Noire" (the black virgin)

Lampaul-Guimiliau The commune of Lampaul-Guimiliau has two calvaries attributed to Doré. One, with a height of , is known as the "Cosquer-Bihan" or "Croaz-Kernévez" and dates to 1621. It is a wayside cross (Croix de chemin) and thought to be one of Doré's early works. It depicts Jesus on the Cross and on the reverse depicts the Virgin Mary with child. The second located at Kerjaffrès is known as the "Croaz-Kerroc'h" and dates to 1626.

Commana, L'église Saint-Derrien This "enclos" church in Commana has two calvaries, one by Doré dating to 1624 and being high. It is carved from kersantite and the paired statues on the crosspiece below the figure of Christ on the Cross depict St Yves/ St Hervé as well as the Virgin Mary, John the Evangelist and a Pietà. It is located in the Église Saint-Derrien cemetery and is inscribed The "Enclos paroissial de Commana" is a good example of a Breton enclos with the parish church, surrounded by a wall and an elaborate entrance. As well as the church, the enclos would include a funeral chapel or ossuary and one or more calvaries, either placed in the cemetery or just outside the church. The Saint-Derrien church has an imposing porch and bell tower and inside the church, the Sainte Anne altarpiece is one of many highly regarded works of ecclesiastical art, and the church has a noteworthy baptismal font with decoration by Honoré Alliot. The entrance to the enclos is an elaborate Arc de Triomphe. On the exterior of the south porch there is a statue of Saint Derrien which is attributed to the Dorė atelier. Some photographs of the enclos are shown here.

Works in the Arrondissement of Châteaulin The following works in the Châteaulin arrondissement are attributed to Doré.

Landévennec There are the remains of a crucifix by Doré in the cloister of the Nouvelle abbaye Saint-Guénolé in Landévennec.

Saint-Ségal The Dorė atelier are attributed with the sculpture of the Virgin Mary with child in the south porch of the Chapelle Saint Sėbastien as well as the Virgin Mary, Mary Magdalene and John the Evangelist statues on the Saint-Ségal calvary near the monument aux morts.

Brennilis

Outside Brennilis' Notre Dame church, we can see Doré's Croix de calvaire which dates to 1625 and includes the group "Notre-Dame de Pitié" at the Cross' base. The Cross is located to the north of the church and has the coat of arms (Blason) of the Quélen family at the base. Doré depicts an angel holding the titulus above Jesus' head. At the base of the pedestal supporting the Cross is the pietà "Notre-Dame de Pitié", with a sword bearing the image of the resurrected Christ on the reverse side.

Lannédern

The Calvary at Lannédern dates to 1625 and is located in the hamlet of Birilit. Lannédern itself has an interesting enclos and its ossuary has a good example of the Ankou, two in fact. See photograph. Also see Note 2 below.

Dinéault There is a calvary in the church enclos of the "bourg" of Dinéault, which lies northwest of Châteaulin. The statues on the calvary include Christ on the cross placed back to back with a depiction of Christ suffering (Christ aux liens), these by Doré and dating to 1648. Records show that the other figures were added later.

Cast, Finistère The small commune of Cast, Finistère, lies between Châteaulin and Douarnenez some north of Quimper and the Église paroissiale Saint-Jérôme in the Rue Kreisker. It has a 1660 Calvary attributed to Doré which carries the inscription It is high and at the base of the pedestal is a depiction of Saint Tujan and a Pietà (Vierge de Pitié) whilst on the crosspiece are statues depicting the Virgin Mary and John the Evangelist and Mary Magdalene and Saint Peter. The Église Saint Jérôme has a Dorė sculpture of Saint Mark with his attribute the lion in a niche on the western façade and a statue of the Virgin Mary with child in a niche in the south porch. In the presbytery at Cast there are the remains of a crucifix which included depictions of the Virgin Mary with child and Saint Mark.

Plonévez-Porzay

The commune of Plonévez-Porzay lies north of Quimper and Doré executed the calvary of Sainte-Anne-La-Palud. Just high, it is thought to date from between 1630 and 1656. On the side opposite Jesus on the cross is a Pietà and on the crosspiece (croisillon) are statues of the Virgin Mary and Saint Peter and John the Evangelist and Saint James the Greater. On the pedestal are what are thought to be remnants of other calvaries which are no longer in existence, namely a statue of Saint Catherine from the 15th Century and statues of Mary Magdalene and Saint Peter.

Port-Launay The Saint-Aubin chapel in the village of Lanvaïdic contains the commune of Port-Launay's calvary sculpted by Doré in 1631. The sculptures have been damaged and some have been placed in the chapel itself. The Dorė atelier are also credited with execution of the cross at Lanvaïdic in 1651.

Saint-Nic The Dorė atelier worked on both the church calvary and that of the Saint-Côme chapel in Saint-Nic.

Rosnoën Nearby the church in Rosnoën is the memorial to those men of the commune who gave their lives in the 1914-1918 and 1939-1945 wars, and this has used the surviving statues from Doré's 1648 calvary, namely statues back to back or géminée of John the Evangelist and Saint Bartholomew, the statue of the Virgin Mary and a bishop, a pietà, and a statue of Saint Audoēn. Also for the Église Saint-Audoēn, the atelier executed a Dieu sauveur for the south porch and a Virgin Mary with child for the west porch.

Telgruc-sur-Mer As part of the decoration of the arc de triomphe of the enclos of the Église Saint-Magloire in Telgruc-sur-Mer, Doré executed back-to-back statues of Saint Magloire and Saint Guénolé. See Winwaloe.

Chapelle Notre-Dame de Kerluan at Châteaulin This Doré Calvary by the chapel Notre-Dame at Châteaulin dates to 1639, a year when the region suffered an outbreak of the plague. On the Cross's crosspiece are statues of the Virgin Mary, Jesus on the cross and John the Evangelist. The statues of Saint Sébastien and St Roch were not works by the Dorė atelier. There is also a pietà by Dorė in the Châteaulin Église Saint-Idunet's north transept.

Douarnenez At Pouldavid's Saint-Vendal chapel there is a calvary dating to 1655. Doré sculpted Christ on the cross reversed with the Virgin Mary with child and back to back statues depicting a bishop with a book reversed with John the Evangelist and a bishop giving a blessing reversed with the Virgin Mary, There are also statues by the Dorė atelier of John the Evangelist reversed with Saint Corentin and the Virgin Mary reversed with Saint Nicholas. These are thought to be the remains of a calvary at Douarnenez-Trėboul, and in the presbytery at Douarnenez-Trėboul is a crucifix also attributed to Dorė and thought to have been part of a calvary.

Plogonnec At Seznec near Plogonnec is the Chapelle Saint-Denis, with a Doré calvary dating to 1641. Christ is depicted on the Cross and below him are back to back ("géminées") statues of the Virgin Mary and John the Evangelist and two bishops. Three angels are shown at Jesus' side collecting blood from his wounds into small pots. At Plogonnec the 1644 calvary of the Saint Pierre chapel is also by the Dorė atelier.

Briec For the Chapelle de Trolez (Saint-Guėnolė) in Briec, Dorė executed a cross with a depiction on the shaft of the cross of Saint-Guėnolė back to back with a saint. Dorė also executed the crucifix. The cross stands in the churchyard.

Cléden-Cap-Sizun In the enclos of the commune Cléden-Cap-Sizun there is a Doré calvary carrying the coats of arms of René de Keridiern and the mayor of Keryvon. In 1630, Doré created another calvary for the Saint-They chapel. This was mutilated but the statues of the Virgin Mary and St Jacques de Compostelle (Saint James the Greater) have been kept. Cléden-Cap-Sizun lies at the tip of Cap-Sizun, west of Quimper

Sizun In the Sizun Musée des Arts et traditions populaires, there is a Doré sculpture of the "bad robber" ("mauvais larron") thought to be what remains of a larger calvary.

Trézilidé There is a Doré calvary in the Trézilidé parish church dating to 1630, although the John the Evangelist back to back with a bishop is by another sculptor. Doré's atelier did execute the depictions of Christ on the cross, the two robbers, the "Notre-Dame de Pitié", and the statues "géminées" of the Virgin Mary and Saint Peter.

Plouédern

In 1974, the church at Plouédern, the Église Saint-Edern, was completely devastated by a fire but was restored for worship in 1978. Doré's 1641 baptismal font (cuve de baptême) survived the fire, but the font's canopy (baldaquin} did not.

Plourin-lès-Morlaix The enclos paroissial of Plourin-lès-Morlaix comprises the usual church, cemetery, ossuary and retaining wall and in and around the church are several statues by Doré which had been part of a calvary. The church, the Église Notre-Dame, has several side chapels and these are where the Doré works can be found as well as on the enclosure wall. These statues, dating to 1630, include Saint Yves and Saint Femme (back to back or "géminées"), Saint Evêque, Saint Matthew with a winged angel at his feet, the usual symbol for this saint, St Luke with his attribute the bull, Saint Grégoire, John the Evangelist with his attribute the eagle, Saint Mark with lion and a group comprising Saint Anne and the Virgin Mary with child. There are also back to back sculptures of Saint Paul and Saint Madeleine and the Virgin Mary with Saint Francis, a Vierge de Pitié and a group depicting the flight from Egypt (La fuite en Egypte). What remains of the figure of Christ can be seen on the wall in the church's "Chapelle de la Vierge-des-douleurs".

The parish church of Saint-Pierre The Poulgar Calvary. Roland Doré's John the Evangelist can be seen to the right of the Cross This church in Plougar has a calvary in its graveyard sculpted by Yann Larhantec with statues of the Virgin Mary and St John on either side of the Cross bearing the crucified Jesus. Doré's standing statue of John the Evangelist is positioned nearby.

Poullan-sur-Mer Doré's "Croix de chemin" at Poullan-sur-Mer is also known as the "Kervignac" cross and dates to 1640. It was restored in 1843. The statues from the cross are kept in a nearby farm.

Works by Doré in the Côtes-d'Armor department The arrondissements of Lannion, Dinan, Saint Brieuc and Guingamp are the four Arrondissements of the Côtes-d'Armor. There are fewer calvaries in this department of Brittany, and as a consequence fewer works by Doré. This coastal area (ar mor means "the sea" in Breton and Côtes means "coasts" in French) is famous for the Pink Granite Coast (Côte de Granit Rose) and for Tréguier and its cathedral of St Tugdual.

Lantic The Doré atelier worked on the calvary of Lantic's Église Notre-Dame de la Cour, sculpting the crucifix and the Virgin Mary with child and the coats of arms of the Rosmadec family.

Senven-Léhart Senven-Léhart is a commune in the Guingamp arrondissement of the Côtes-d'Armor department of Brittany. It is about south of Ploumagoar. Although most of Doré's work is to be seen in Finistère, the calvary by the entrance to the Église Notre-Dame is one of the calvaries that he worked on in the Côtes-d'Armor region. It dates to 1635 and originally had 19 statues but the ravages of time and the Reign of Terror have seen these reduced to 12. The base of the calvary is granite whilst the statues were carved from kersantite. This calvary has three crosses, those of the two robbers Gesmas and Dismas on either side of that of Christ. The "bad" robber grimaces defiantly whilst the "good" robber looks to be at peace. Some have remarked that Doré's Pietà is one of the most beautiful in Brittany. Jesus is laid across Mary's lap whilst Marie-Salomé supports his head and Mary Magdalene carries the oil to be used for the embalming. Also at the foot of the cross, Mary appears again and two horsemen are placed to her left and her right, one of whom was thought to represent Saint Longinus. John the Evangelist is also depicted with a full head of hair. On the reverse side of the calvary, Saint Peter is depicted carrying his key and a book, and below him is a depiction of Christ being taunted (Christ aux outrages) with Saint Yves to his left, dressed as a lawyer and Saint Louis carrying a symbol of justice.

Works in Morbihan Doré has been attributed with the following work in Morbihan.

Saint Joseph Doré's statue of Saint Joseph at Kerloaguen is reckoned to be the first modern statue of the Virgin Mary's husband. It was in 1640 that François le Cozic, the squire of Kerloaguen in Plougonven, decided to commission a statue of Joseph for the chapel he had placed under that saint's patronage and he chose Doré to execute the statue. In 1921, Pope Grégoire XV had ordered that 19 March be devoted as a feast day of the Virgin Mary's husband, and the Saint Joseph cult grew rapidly. In 1624, Quebec, in Canada, named Saint Joseph as their patron saint. When the chapel fell into ruin, the Saint Joseph statue was taken into the Église Saint-Joseph in Plougonven.

Quéven

Doré was the sculptor of the calvary in Quéven's old cemetery in the Rue du docteur Dieny just by the church. Originally there were a total of sixteen statues on the calvary, placed back to back as is the practice with Breton calvaries, but only five now survive, those of Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Catherine and two bishops. The statue of Saint Paul stands alone.

The Guimiliau Parish church The decoration of the porch of the Guimiliau parish church, the Église Saint-Miliau, was undertaken by the Maitre de Plougastel in 1606 and Doré added the bust of a woman and a statue of Christ enseignant to the Maitre de Plougastel's sculpture.

The tomb of Guillaume de Rosmadec This tomb by Doré is in the Église Notre-Dame la Cour in Lantic.

The tomb of Thébault de Tanouam This tomb by Doré is located in Plérin's parish church. The photograph below shows how the gisants are positioned in the cloister. Doré also executed two gisant for the Bréhant family which are in the cathedral.