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Massive walls and a buttress were constructed during the seventeenth century in order to strengthen the foundations of the bell tower which stands over the monolithic subterranean church of St Emilion in south-west France. These works have resulted in an overload of the geostructures which underlie the monument. Indirect methods of analysis and internal sounding (auscultation) of the geological materials, complemented by various direct measurements, have permitted a precise assessment of the current condition of the vault and pillars and allowed a plan of conservation to be developed, followed by the construction of a reversible Support system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]