Sometimes the same thing happens with Architecture as with the discovery of the mythical city of Troy: Heinrich Shliemann, one of the forerunners of modern Archeology, had to continue delving into the layers of successive 'Troyas', before finding the remains of that one, the Troy of Helen and Paris, of Agamemnon, of Hector, of Achilles and from where Aeneas was exiled, immortalized by Homer in the epic universally known as 'The Iliad'.
Suffice it as an example of this, the vision of one of the most charismatic and at the same time, most curiously disconcerting temples of that land with a reputation for bread and wine, which is Castilla: the church of Our Lady of the Announced.
The church of Our Lady of the Announced, which we must locate in the Valladolid region of Tierra de Campos (Land of Fields), near the Montes Torozos (Torozos Mound) and outside the walls of the medieval town of Urueña -considered, culturally, as the first Villa del Libro (Village of the Book) in Spain - already defines in its structure and at a glance, an amalgam of architectural styles, which define its importance and interest throughout history.
Originally conceived to serve as a monastery, its primitive pre-Romanesque foundations were being molded to new conceptions, giving way to that Romanesque, which was considered, in all fairness, especially in the 11th and 12th centuries, as' the architectural style of Christianity. ', par excellence, including later architectural styles, such as the Baroque, the vision of whose chapel, incoherently added to the apse or chevet - as always, facing a projection - ostensibly distorts the harmony of the whole.
A set, in which one can appreciate, in the blind arches, a certain influence of the type called 'Lombard', a common detail in many churches of the Huesca Pyrenees, such as those located in the spectacular Val de Boí and even located in Castilian lands, such as the church of the Soria town of Bordecorex, whose tradition insists on seeing there the place where the Arab leader Almanzor died, after the famous skirmish with the Christians in Calatañazor, on the eve of the year 1000.
With these data, we can assume that part of the aforementioned influence came from the opening of the European communication channels, reopened after the discovery of the supposed remains of the Apostle Saint James in Compostela, as well as by the arrival of the so-called Mozarabic - Christians who resided in territory occupied by Muslims - employed as settlers in the new conquered territories and whose influence on the art of construction was noted, both inside this temple, and in some others nearby, as may be the case of the neighboring temple of San Cebrián de Mazote, located just four or five kilometers away.
In fact, and although there is controversy among historians, it is assumed that the first settlers of the place -a place, this one where the church rises, which is characterized by the numerous sources and underground springs- were of Basque origin and the name of the town, Urueña, could be derived from the Basque root ur, which means water.
Others, on the contrary, make it derive from the language of the primitive Vacceans -Celtiberian tribe- which being very similar -ur / uru- would have a similar meaning.
Regardless of this linguistic protohistory, the truth is that the primitivism of this temple, could be said to be, in addition, an addition of singular beauty and an example worthy of being taken into account in terms of the evolution of artistic and architectural conceptions, which breaks molds and constitute one of those examples where, without having to be a specialist in the field, 'learn to read', as one of our most famous writers, Miguel de Unamuno, did with cathedrals like that of León.
NOTICE: Both the text and the accompanying photographs are my exclusive intellectual property and therefore are subject to my Copyright.
The structure is such a beauty. Happy New Year from the Philippines!
An interesting mix of architectural styles. A cordial greeting from Madrid and my best wishes for this new year that we have just started.
Enhorabuena. Has recibido apoyo
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