The gothic apparition rises above the flat fields and salt marshes of the Normandy coast. The abbey's spire crowned with a golden figure of St. Michael. Pilgrims have been walking out to it across the sand for centuries. Legend tells that Micheal, the fiery archangel, appeared to Bishop Aubert of Avranges in 708 and told him to build a shrine on the craggy island in the bay. The bishop was slow to act, even after a second visitation, so Micheal appeared a third time and burned a hole in his skull with his blazing finger - that got the work started. Holy relics brought from Italy drew pilgrims to the island, though they were probably following an establish route, as many hilltop sites sacred to the Celtic solar god Bel were reassigned to St Micheal when Christianity absorbed older pagan traditions.
The granite outcrop was originally part of the land, but as sea levels rose after the last Ice Age it was cut off from the coast, except for a small natural land bridge covered by the tide, which rises rapidly by as much as 14m. Early pilgrims had to pick their way across the flats a low water, taking care to avoid treacherous patches of quicksand, and local guides still recreate this hazardous journey for modern visitors. A permanent causeway was added in 1879, but this has created a build-up of silt carried down the River Couesnon. Work is now under way to replace the causeway with a bridge, allowing the sea to flow freely around the mount so that its island status will be restored.
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| Mont-Saint-Michel sky view |
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| Mont-Saint-Michel night view |
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| At Mont-Saint-Michel |
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