What is "cimiez"

Cimiez is a neighborhood in Nice, southern France. The area contains the Musée Matisse and the ruins of Cemenelum, capital of the Ancient Roman province Alpes Maritimae on the Ligurian coast. Cemenelum was an important rival of Nice, continuing to exist as a separate city till the time of the Lombard invasions.

The ruins include an arena, amphitheatre, thermal baths, and paleochristian basilica. For many years, the Nice Jazz Festival was held on the grounds of the Roman Ruins in July each year (since 2011 the festival moved to the Place Masséna). Close to the ruins is the splendid Excelsior Régina Palace where Queen Victoria spent part of her long visits to the French Riviera.

Also here can be found the Cimiez Monastery and church that have been used by the Franciscan monks since the 16th century. The church houses the '' Pietà'', Crucifixion and Deposition, by the Italian medieval artist Ludovico Brea. On display are also more than 300 documents and works of art from the 15th to 18th centuries. Buried in the cemetery near the monastery are the painters Henri Matisse and Raoul Dufy plus the winner of the 1937 Nobel Prize for Literature, Roger Martin du Gard.