Rocamadour is a small clifftop village overlooking the Alzou Valley in the Lot, south-central France.
Travel back in time in the sacred city of Rocamadour, one of the most spectacular villages in Europe. With its breathtaking layers of houses and chapels, Rocamadour has been a great pilgrimage site since the Middle-Ages. the Shrine of Our Lady of Rocamadour, a complex of religious structures centred on a miraculous statue of the Virgin Mary, as well as the tomb of an ancient saint.
Legend has it that Zaccheus of Jericho who was said to have conversed with Jesus, fled to Rocamadour to escape persecution. It’s said he took with him a statue of Mary. He died there in about 70AD. Soon after, pilgrims started to arrive and many reported miraculous happenings. Then, as today, there were 216 rocky steps known as the Grand Escalier, leading to the Chapel of our Lady. Pilgrims would often climb on their knees. Kings and clerics came in number.
In 1166, the fame of Rocamadour rocketed when a perfectly preserved body was found in an ancient grave near the Chapel of our Lady. It was said the body was that of Saint Amadour. He was a 4th century hermit but not much is known about him.
The basilica and the crypt are both listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites and the chapel of Miracles holds the renowned statue of the Black Madonna, worshipped here for over a millennium.
