Cahors The Cathedral of Saint-Étienne

Pope Callixtus II consecrated the altar of the cathedral of Cahors in 1119, and the church is roofed with two great domes, in the manner of the Romanesque churches of southwestern France. Its north portal, carved around 1140, shows the Ascension, and its cloister dates from the early sixteenth century.

The cathedral keeps a relic venerated as the Holy Coif, the cloth said to have covered the head of Christ in the tomb. Walkers on the road to Compostela leave the town by the Valentré bridge over the Lot, a fortified bridge of the fourteenth century.

Further reading: Rocamadour: A Pilgrim’s Guide to Our Lady of Rocamadour; Avignon: A Pilgrim’s Guide to the City of the Popes; The Way of Saint James from Le Puy: A Pilgrim’s Guide.

• The domes and the north portalThe Ascension, carved around 1140.
• The Valentré bridgeThree towers over the Lot.

• Via ConchaeThe Way of the Shell, eight daysDay VII, Figeac to Cahors, across the Quercy

About an hour by road from Figeac.

• RocamadourThe Shrine of Our Lady of Rocamadour, about 26 miles as the crow flies
• MoissacThe Abbey of Saint-Pierre of Moissac, about 30 miles as the crow flies
• FigeacThe Abbey Church of Saint-Sauveur, about 31 miles as the crow flies
• ConquesThe Abbey Church of Sainte-Foy, about 48 miles as the crow flies