La Motta Chapel

2 June 2024

Near the town of La Tour-de-Trême (canton of Fribourg) is a small chapel on a hill. It was built in 1635 and dedicated to St. Roch and St. Sebastian.

Both were patrons against infectious diseases and the plague. The chapel owed its existence to an epidemic in 1635.

The interesting thing about this chapel is its name. It is not named after the saints, but its location. Its name derives from the Celtic word mutta, meaning height, which became the French word motte, fortified place on a hill.

The aesthetic of this simple chapel is the context of trees, cattle and the silhouette with the mountains in the background.

Source: La Chapelle de la Motta