Du mausolée à la basilique funéraire à Lyon : Saint-Just, Saint-Irénée

The case of Lyon is interesting because of the ancient Christianization known through the Christians martyrs of Lugdunum and Vienna in 177, the role of the city, a religious capital managed by prelates and one of the burgundy capitals. To study the process leading from the mausoleum to the funeral basilica, Lyon offers several contemporary texts and lots of excavations data, 8 funeral basilicas, sometimes built on older mausoleums (St-Just, St-Irénée), and several small family mausoleums. In order to strengthen their authority and the faith of the believers, bishops promoted the cult of saints and local martyrs; they built big funeral basilicas intended to shelter graves of simple people as well as burial of saints or martyrs; big transepts and crypts were planned for their worship at St-Just, St-Irénée and St Lawrence of Choulans. These funeral basilicas did also Christianize the suburbium between the 2^ndhalf of the 5^thand the beginning of the 7^thcent. AD.