Sparkling with its nineteen glass roofs, the Saint-Hélier Church sparkles in an admirable symphony of colors. Created by François Décorchemont, master glassmaker from Conches, the glass roofs, translucent like alabaster, arouse the curiosity of hundreds of visitors each year.
The stained glass windows offer a color mosaic. Mixtures of blues and reds, mauves and pinks, or even green and yellow, they offer the church unique and sparkling lights. Through these windows, discover the patron saints of the church: Saint-Pierre (the fisher of men), Saint-Hélier (the patron saint of the parish), Saint-Louis (King of France), Saint Jeanne d' Arc, Father Foucauld (apostle of the Tuaregs), Saint Geneviève, Saint Anselme and even Saint Paul. These 19 glass roofs make the church famous.
In 1930, he developed a unique technique: white crystal (and not the glass) is melted in the oven and colored in the mass ; cooled, it is reduced to powder to provide the base pigments; the part to be obtained is first molded, and the mold filled with powders mixed with the desired color, then placed in the oven. The room is then hollow carved, still warm, then slowly cooled to give it marbled reflections. Assembly is done at ciment (and not lead), without external contributions.
The light plays on the hollows and solids of the crystal, which emphasize the design, as through the facets of a precious stone...
If you want to discover the whole history and works of François Décorchemont, museum is dedicated to him in Conches en Ouches.
