Santiago de Peñalba
Encyclopedia
El Bierzo
El Bierzo is a shire in the province of León, Spain. The valley has the administrative status of comarca and its capital is the town of Ponferrada. Other major towns are Bembibre and Villafranca del Bierzo, the historical capital.- History :...
, close to Ponferrada
Ponferrada
Ponferrada is a city in the province of León, Castile and León, Spain. It lies on the Sil River, a tributary of the river Miño, in the El Bierzo valley, completely surrounded by mountains. It is the last major town along the French route of the Way of St. James before it reaches its destination...
, province of León
León (province)
León is a province of northwestern Spain, in the northwestern part of the autonomous community of Castile and León.About one quarter of its population of 500,200 lives in the capital, León. The weather is cold and dry during the winter....
, Community of Castile and León
Castile and León
Castile and León is an autonomous community in north-western Spain. It was so constituted in 1983 and it comprises the historical regions of León and Old Castile...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
.
The Valle del Silencio area was full of sanctuaries and monasteries since the 8th century, and was called "La Tebaida Berciana" (Bercian Thebaid
Thebaid
The Thebaid or Thebais is the region of ancient Egypt containing the thirteen southernmost nomes of Upper Egypt, from Abydos to Aswan. It acquired its name from its proximity to the ancient Egyptian capital of Thebes....
).
History
Abbot Salomón promoted its construction in the first one-half of the 10th century, in times of complete prosperity of the Kingdom of LeónKingdom of León
The Kingdom of León was an independent kingdom situated in the northwest region of the Iberian Peninsula. It was founded in AD 910 when the Christian princes of Asturias along the northern coast of the peninsula shifted their capital from Oviedo to the city of León...
. It was concretely under Ramiro II
Ramiro II of León
Ramiro II , son of Ordoño II, was King of León from 931 until his death. Initially titular king only of a lesser part of Asturias, he gained the crown of León after his brother Alfonso IV abdicated in 931...
reign, who expanded the limits of the kingdom beyond the Duero River. Ramiro II made multiple donations to the church and the monastery of the locality.
One of those donations made to the Bishopric of Astorga was the so-called Cruz de Peñalba (Cross of Peñalba), symbol of El Bierzo's comarca
Comarca
A comarca is a traditional region or local administrative division found in parts of Spain, Portugal, Panama, Nicaragua, and Brazil. The term is derived from the term marca, meaning a "march, mark", plus the prefix co- meaning "together, jointly".The comarca is known in Aragonese as redolada and...
. This cross is an example of Visigothic goldsmithery influence on the mozarabic models.
Architecture
The church is characterized by opposed apses, an unusual feature shared with the tenth-century church of San Cebrián de MazoteSan Cebrián de Mazote
San Cebrián de Mazote is a municipality located in the province of Valladolid, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2004 census , the municipality has a population of 200 inhabitants.- External links :*...
(also constructed during Kingdom of León
Kingdom of León
The Kingdom of León was an independent kingdom situated in the northwest region of the Iberian Peninsula. It was founded in AD 910 when the Christian princes of Asturias along the northern coast of the peninsula shifted their capital from Oviedo to the city of León...
apogee).
Its decoration is a mixture of Celtic
Celtic art
Celtic art is the art associated with the peoples known as Celts; those who spoke the Celtic languages in Europe from pre-history through to the modern period, as well as the art of ancient peoples whose language is uncertain, but have cultural and stylistic similarities with speakers of Celtic...
elements (lunar and astral symbols), Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
(its Greek-cross plant), Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
(a little umbrella roof dome covers the principal altar) and Mozarabic (horseshoe arches).