The Gargoyles of Mont Saint Michel

To celebrate this week's book launch of my latest novel, Quicksand, set partly at Mont Saint Michel, here's a closer look at the weather-worn gargoyles of Mont Saint Michel. 

Mont Saint Michel is built on an island off the coast of Normandy. It has been a monastery, a scriptorium, and a prison. Because of its strategic location surrounded by dangerous tides and quicksand, it's been a relatively secure fortress during periods of history that were anything but secure.

The hilly island off the northern coast of France in Normandy was transformed into Mont Saint Michel after a local bishop had a dream in the year 708. Saint Michael appeared to the St. Aubert, the bishop of Avranches, in a dream, and asked him to build a monastery. Legend says that Aubert thought it nothing more than a dream until Saint Michael returned in another dream -- and this time burned a hole in the bishop’s skull with the touch of his finger.

Building on a rocky hill rising out of the ocean was difficult, and several miracles were attributed to making the seemingly-impossible construction a success. The island rises out of the fog and is surrounded by the ocean during high tide. Until a causeway was built, visitors had to wait until low tide to reach the Mont. And to this day, people die in the waters surrounding the Mont, either by getting caught unawares in the dangerous tides or stepping into quicksand that's deceptively the same color as solid sand....

Looking up at the gargoyles on the Abbey tour

Weather-worn gargoyles visible from the cloisters

The Abbey's spire, with Saint Michael on top and dozens of gargoyles below

  

And on the steep and winding main street leading up to the Abbey, you can guy your very own gargoyle

Mont Saint Michel Part II: The Abbey

The building that gives Mont Saint Michel its distinctive skyline silhouette is the abbey. It's a church plus monastery and cloisters. A statue of St. Michael (once a patron saint of the French Royal Army) can be seen at the top of the abbey spire. The abbey has a fascinating history, including being used as a prison. With its strategic location on an island surrounded by dangerous tides and quicksand, it's easy to see why it's had so many uses over time.

Last week I posted some additional Mont Saint Michel photos. All these photos were shot on 35mm film during my 2000 visit. 

Mont Saint Michel in Normandy, France

I last visited Mont Saint Michel, the island fortification in Normandy, France, in the year 2000, while doing graduate studies in Bath, England. The third Jaya Jones treasure hunt mystery novel (that I'm currently writing) takes place in France, partly at Mont Saint Michel, so I'm excited that I get to plan a return visit. In the meantime, I pulled out my old photos, shot on 35mm film before I owned a digital camera. A few of my favorite old photos of Le Mont are below.

Dangerous tides and quicksand surround the Mont, which is why it was such a strategic location throughout French history. In past centuries, people used to have to wait for the tides to recede for a safe causeway to be above the water. A raised road was built, which has recently been replaced with a dam and small bridge. The castle-like structure that rises our of the center of the Mont is the abbey.

  

The Long and Winding Road -- And a Castle Staircase, Too

I'm oh-so-close to finishing this draft of my latest mystery. The good news for my hopes of finishing the book in a timely manner is that I'm heading out to Left Coast Crime, a fabulous mystery convention where I'm sure to be inspired by mystery authors whose books I love -- and who I only know about because they managed to let themselves type "THE END." 

Winding roads and labyrinthine staircase photos are in order for my current state of mind:

The middle of nowhere (officially)
AKA the dead of winter in beautiful Cornwall, England

Mont Saint Michel, France

One of my favorite mystery novels of all time takes place at Mont St. Michel along the Normandy coast in France: OLD BONES by Aaron Elkins. The tides that surround this fortress set the scene for the mystery featuring "skeleton detective" Gideon Oliver.

As you can see in the photo above, the island can be reached by a narrow man-made road that sits above the tide. But it's much more fun to think about the quickly-rising tides that cover the quicksand that surrounds most of the island. And when you're on the island looking out at sea through the fog, it's easy to imagine a time when the tide would trap you on the island abbey.

A castle in Wales with winding staircases to nowhere.

(I know, I know, I wanted to do this blog so I could organize my photos, and "castle in Wales" is hardly descriptive. Promising to post photos is definitely helping, but I've still got some gaps in my notes)

--Gigi