Temple of Janus (Temple de Janus)
Two towering walls of a Gallo-Roman temple standing alone in the meadows outside Autun.
- Heritage site
- 48 min from Beaune
- Allow 30 minutes
- Autun
€170one way from Beaune with a private driver
At a glance
- Official website
- autun-tourisme.com
Getting there
Private driver from Beaune: 48 min by road (55 km), €170 one way for the whole car.
Coming by train or plane? Transfers from stations and airports →
About the place
Just north-west of Autun, two walls of a Gallo-Roman temple rise more than 20 metres above the meadows of the Arroux valley. Despite its name, nobody knows which god was worshipped here. It is one of the most striking Roman ruins in Burgundy, and only a few minutes from the town centre.
What you will see
A short walk across the meadow brings you to the foot of the ruin. Two complete walls of the cella still stand, with the start of the other two. Look for the rows of beam holes high on the outer faces, which once held the roof of the gallery that ran around the sanctuary, and for the niches that framed statues. The flat valley setting makes the walls look even taller.
History
The temple stood at the centre of a large sanctuary outside the walls of Augustodunum, in an area occupied since Neolithic times. It was built in the Roman period, most likely in the 1st century AD, on the model of Celtic temples: a square central chamber, the cella, surrounded by a covered gallery. Excavations since 2013 have revealed the extent of the sanctuary around it, including earlier structures beneath the temple itself.
The name Janus has no archaeological basis. It probably grew from the local place name, la Genetoye, a spot where broom grows, which a 16th-century historian linked to the Latin for roof of Janus. In the Middle Ages the walls were reused in a fortified position with a ditch, which may explain why they survived so well. The temple was on France's first list of historic monuments in 1840.
Planning your visit
Tips for your visit
The temple stands in open country beyond the river Arroux, about 400 metres from the old Roman city, and pairs naturally with the Porte d'Arroux on the way. Allow 30 minutes. The grass can be wet after rain, so sensible shoes help, and the soft light of morning or late afternoon is best for photographs.
Around here
What to combine with Temple of Janus on the same day, nearest first.
Questions
Temple of Janus is about 48 min from Beaune by road (55 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €170 for the whole car, up to 4 guests.
Did you know? The surviving walls rise more than 20 metres and are about 2.2 metres thick, faced entirely with small squared sandstone blocks, without the brick courses often seen in Roman walls.
Sources
Temple of Janus with a private driver
€170 one way from Beaune · up to 4 guests