Basilique Saint-Martin d'Ainay

This compact Romanesque church in Lyon's Ainay quarter is among the oldest surviving religious buildings in the city, consecrated in the early twelfth century. Its warm stone and brick walls, sturdy tower, and reused antique columns give it a rare austere solidity amid the grand later architecture nearby. Interior frescoes and carved capitals reward close inspection, and the intimate nave feels worlds apart from the bustle of the Presqu'île outside. The basilica anchors a genteel district of eighteenth-century townhouses and quiet squares.