Sainte Marguerite Baroque Church

The Sainte-Marguerite Church in Geispolsheim, built in 1771, is one of the finest examples of late Alsatian Baroque architecture. It is distinguished by its imposing side bell tower, whose base dates back to the old medieval church. Its façade, adorned with a winged gable and a molded portal, features a niche containing a statue of Saint Margaret slaying a dragon, symbolizing the enemies of Christ. The original polychrome wooden statue, dated 1480, is now kept inside the church alongside exceptional Baroque furnishings carved around 1770 by François-Antoine Ketterer from Colmar. The nave, remodeled in the 19th century with a painted stucco ceiling, ends in a polygonal choir. The richly carved main altar is topped by a canopy with columns, while a 19th-century painting depicts Saint Margaret trampling the dragon. The pulpit, in the same style, is crowned by a lamb holding the Easter banner, and a 17th-century pietà comes from Hattisheim. A gilded wooden statue of the Immaculate Conception Virgin, carried in procession during the Feast of Corpus Christi, completes this heritage. The romantic Rinckenbach organ (1888), housed in a case by Théophile Klem, is one of the few preserved in Alsace in its original state. Outside, a 1770 Baroque calvary decorated with rocaille and bas-reliefs dominates the site. Classified as a Historic Monument, this church embodies the harmony and stylistic unity of Alsatian Baroque.