[1] Renowned as the only church in Thiers primarily composed of Gothic architectural elements, it is also a notable tourist attraction in this medieval town, complemented by its picturesque namesake cemetery.

The addition of "Passet" derives from the root "pas", meaning a narrow passage or difficult crossing in a valley, referencing the church's geographic location on a promontory overlooking the Vallée des Usines.

When the fourth fortification enclosure was constructed at the end of the 14th century, the suburb now known as the Saint-Jean district was integrated into the rest of the upper town, though the church itself remained outside the fortified walls.

[4][9] The church quickly became a place of worship for the industrial population, as the nearby Durolle gorges hosted numerous grinding mills and factories.

[10] In the 17th century, following the establishment of the White Penitents of "the Most August Blessed Sacrament of the Altar" in 1622, the western part of the church was modified to suit the needs of the confraternity.

[4] By the late 18th century, the bell tower's underground area was converted into an ossuary to house bones transferred from the burial ground of Saint-Genès, which had been decommissioned.

[13] To highlight the Saint-Jean district, its cemetery, and the church itself, the municipality worked closely with the Creux de l'Enfer contemporary art center located in the nearby Vallée des Usines.

In collaboration with the Thiers Dore et Montagne community of communes, the church was reopened for the 2021 summer season to host a public exhibition.

[4] The entire structure is rib-vaulted, except for the first bay of the northern aisle, which features Romanesque groin vaulting as a remnant of the church's earliest phase.

[5] The bell tower, located at the northwest corner of the building, is accessed via a semi-engaged spiral staircase housed in a polygonal turret.

[4] A variety of materials were used in the church's masonry, including granite, arkose, and lava stone, employing several construction techniques that are partially visible in the current building.

In contrast, the 15th- and 19th-century masonry consists of rubble stone, coated with plaster on the church's western façade, the chevet, and parts of the northern side.

[14] In 1876, two years before the inauguration of the Limandons Cemetery, located a few hundred meters away, the burial ground of Saint-Jean was once again reserved exclusively for parishioners of the church of St John.

[2] It features a somewhat irregular collection of over 700 graves, primarily arranged on terraces oriented east-west, divided by a central path that follows the natural slope.

[14] The burial ground extends from the Place Saint-Jean to the north — featuring a lava stone entrance gate previously framed on the interior side by two chestnut trees — to the rocky outcroppings above the river to the south.