Vienne contains many antique buildings, making it a ville romaine et médiévale. Near the center of town on place du Palais is the Temple d'Auguste et de Livie, built on the orders of the Roman emperor Claudius and turned into a "temple of reason" during the French Revolution. Another outstanding monument is the Pyramide du Cirque Romain, part of the Roman circus. Rising 16m (52 ft.), it rests on a portico with four arches and is sometimes called the tomb of Pilate.
Take rue Clémentine to the Cathédrale St-Maurice, place St-Maurice (tel. 04-74-85-60-28), which dates from the 12th century and wasn't completed until the 15th. It has three aisles but no transepts. Its west front is built in the Flamboyant Gothic style, and inside are many fine Romanesque sculptures.
In the south part of town is the Eglise St-Pierre, place St-Pierre (tel. 04-74-85-20-35). A landmark with origins in the 5th century, it's one of the oldest medieval churches in France. Inside, the Musée Lapidaire (tel. 04-74-85-20-35) displays architectural fragments and sculptures from excavations. The museum is open April through October Tuesday to Sunday from 9:30am to 1pm and 2 to 6pm; January through March and November and December Tuesday to Friday from 9:30am to 12:30pm and 2 to 5pm, Saturday and Sunday from 2 to 6pm. Admission is 2.80€ ($4) for adults, 2€ ($2.90) for students, and free for children 17 and under. The museum is closed January 1, May 1, November 1, November 11, and December 25.
A Roman Theater (Théâtre Romain), 7 rue du Cirque (tel. 04-74-85-39-23), has been excavated east of town at the foot of Mont Pipet. Theatrical spectacles were staged here for an audience of thousands. You can visit September and October Tuesday through Sunday 9:30am to 1pm and 2 to 6pm; January through March and November and December Tuesday through Saturday 9:30am to 12:30pm and 2 to 5:30pm, Sunday 1:30 to 5:30pm; and April through August daily 9:30am to 1pm and 2 to 6pm. Admission is 6€ ($8.70) for a day pass.
If you have about an hour for a side trip, in Hauterives, south of Vienne, you'll find one of the world's strangest pieces of architecture. The Palais du Facteur Cheval, or Palace of the Mailman Cheval (tel. 04-75-68-81-19), the lifelong work of French postman Ferdinand Cheval, is built of stone and concrete and elaborately decorated, often with clamshells. It's an eccentric palace of fantasy and a tribute to the aesthetic value, or mania, of the individual. The work was finished in 1912, when Cheval was 76. Admission is 5.30€ ($7.70) for adults, 4.30€ ($6.30) students, and 3.80€ ($5.50) for children 6 to 16. The palace is open in July and August daily 9:30am to 12:30pm and 1:30 to 7pm; April, May, June, and September daily 9am to 12:30pm and 1:30 to 6:30pm; February, March, October, and November daily 9:30am to 12:30pm and 1:30 to 5:30pm; and December and January 1 to January 14 daily 9:30am to 12:30pm and 1:30 to 4:30pm.
