The church is located on a small place in the middle of the village. It was built during the 12th century. Its structure is typical of the churches of Essonne. Throughout the centuries, it was restored and modified until the 19th century. The nave has three spans vaulted with ogives. The two-levels bell tower was built during the 12th century.

The diversity of the building’s periods can clearly be seen. Thus, we can see that there are no buttresses all along the nave but there is one along the choir. This is a proof of how different periods mean different architectures. Also, the spans are a mix from different centuries too : some are from the 12th century and others from the 15th century.

Some pieces of the furniture of the church are classified as part of the Monuments Historiques : wood sculptures, plaster sculptures and a painting inspired by Rubens. Also, a beautiful polychrome statue from the 14th century representing Virgin Mary and Jesus can be seen.

In 2001, an incredible discovery was made inside the church. Indeed, during the restoration of the building, some paintings were found under the arches of the nave from the 19th century. Those very old paintings are sadly hidden under those arches and invisible to the public. It is a false-stone facade representing different symbols of France such as the fleur-de-ly, roses, daisies and coat-of-arms. This kind of painting was once to commemorate King’s crossing a place or it was a gift from very high nobles.

The church of Prunay is dedicated to Saint-Martin de Tours (Saint Martin) also known under the name of Martin le Miséricordieux. He was from Szombathely (also known as Savaria during the Roman Empire) in Hungary and he is one of the most famous and prayed saints in the whole world. He is one of the secondary patron saints in France. He was born in a military family and despite his wish to be religious, Martin became a military. The most famous part of his legend is when one night, as a legionnaire near Amiens, he tore up his coat to give half of it to a frozen poor man. As a person who was part of the army, he was not allowed to become an ecclesiastical. However, the people of Tours wanted him as their bishop so they kidnapped him and named him as bishop without his consent. He founded several abbeys and parishes all along the Loire Valley. He died of old age near Tours and was buried at the place of the basilica Saint-Martin de Tours. A recreation of his sarcophagus can be seen in the crypt.

SOURCE: Mairie de Prunay-sur-Essone, “Le Patrimoine Religieux de Milly-la-Forêt et de la Communauté de Communes des 2 Vallées” des Amis de Milly-en-Gâtinais et Environs, Parc Naturel Régional du Gâtinais Français