The date of completion, 1759, appears on the four wrought iron rods at the corners of the facade. At that time, the interior remained unfinished, its decoration dates from 1847. The bell tower was built in 1845. Its construction was entrusted to a Piedmontese stonemason, originally from Val Sesia, Domenico Gualino.
The base of the square bell tower was once part of the ancient Montjoie castle which, in its time, monitored access to the col du Bonhomme mountain pass. The porch informs us that the church is dedicated to the Holy Trinity, rare in this part of Europe.
The money needed for the construction came mostly from expatriates. The church survived the French Revolution, the annexation (of the Mont-Blanc region) and the Napoleonic wars.
The secret to the making of the original tin-plated scales has since been forgotten. The roof was restored with stainless steel scales that don’t have the golden effect of the previous ones.
The Church was immortalized in 1802 by the famous English painter Turner. Its last renovation, after that made by the Piedmontese in 1882, was completed in 1976 by Edouard Borga, under the leadership of Abbot Babaz.
An extract from "Les Contamines at the beginning of the century" as seen by an amateur photographer, the doctor Ancelet