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Church St Jean de Montmartre
Curious for its style and construction materials, St Jean de Monmartre is notable as the first example of reinforced concrete in the construction of the church. Built from 1894 to 1904, it was designed by the architect Anatole de Baudot, student of Viollet-le-Duc and Henri Labrouste. The brick and ceramic tile cladding structure presents Art Nouveau design features, while exploiting the superior structural qualities of reinforced concrete with lightness and transparency. The Art Nouveau stained glass window was executed by Jac Galland.
At that time the Sacred Heart was still under construction and the old Saint-Pierre church could not accommodate all the parisians. Then the Sobaux priest asked for the creation of a new church. The site made the project very complicated: small in size, irregular in shape, with a steep slope and problems of stability, it needed all the success of the architect Anatole de Baudot.
The reinforced concrete structure followed a system developed by engineer Paul Cottancin. The construction was accompanied by skepticism about the properties of the new material, which violated the established rules for the construction of unreinforced masonry. A lawsuit delayed construction, resulting in a demolition order that was not resolved until 1902, when construction resumed.
Tips
There is a guided tour of the church every fourth Sunday of the month at 4:00 PM.