Église Saint-Nizier

The two uneven towers of the Église Saint-Nizier define the skyline of the Presqu'île. One spire remains a heavy, truncated stone square while the other reaches up in a slender, openwork flame style. This church occupies the site of the very first cathedral of Lyon, where the city’s early martyrs were buried. During the French Revolution, the building served as a warehouse for saltpeter, a key ingredient for gunpowder, leaving the interior stripped of its original medieval splendor.