In the center of several cozy Catalan villages, compactly built in the expanses of the colorful valley of the Val de Boi, in the highlands of the Pyrenees, nine magnificent churches built in the Romanesque style rise. Harmoniously complementing the local picturesque surroundings, these religious buildings have the status of national historical and architectural monuments of Spain and have been included in the list of protected World Cultural Heritage sites under the auspices of UNESCO since the beginning of this century.

All nine Romanesque monuments were built and consecrated on the territory of the beautiful Val-de-Boille at the beginning of the 12th century. Since then, these majestic buildings have hardly changed under the weight of the years and still clearly illustrate the architectural canons of those times. Laid out of stone blocks, given to the churches with their catchy and exceptional structures, so characteristic of Romanesque architecture, they look more like fortresses than parishes. Interior decorations of all buildings are remarkable for their ancient frescoes, created in the first quarter of the thirteenth century, which are now considered excellent examples of medieval art.

Each of the mentioned churches is unique in its own way and deserves special attention. That is why all the local masterpieces of Romanesque architecture, located in the villages of Barruera, Taull, Boy, Call, Cardet, Durro and Enril-la-Val, have passed under the protection of UNESCO. In addition to churches, all the villages in the valley are also notable for their cozy old houses, colorful fields in the surroundings and extensive seasonal pastures, which are set aside for higher slopes.

The old Romanesque churches in the Val-de-Boie in the Pyrenees are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I have wanted to see them for a long time. Several circumstances attracted me to the valley: distance from the main tourist trails, beautiful views of the Pyrenees and temples of which there are few analogues left in Europe.

Valley of the Val de Bouille in the Spanish Pyrenees

This valley is lost in the mountains and apparently passed the war and destruction. Probably, the locals did not have the money to rebuild the parish churches in the latest fashion. Perhaps for this reason, churches built in the 11th-12th centuries have survived. These temples are among the oldest in Spain.

Val de Bouille is a tourist place, though the tourist is special here. It's a long way to get here from the coast. By the way, the road is not easy - along mountain serpentines.

In addition to the village churches, which, in my amateurish opinion, besides the fact that they are old, do not differ in anything outstanding, hiking trails to the reserve begin in the Val de Bouille. There, according to guidebooks, gorgeous views of the Spanish Pyrenees open up.

Therefore, the tourist here is specific, mostly Spaniards with backpacks.

We visited these sights from Andorra, where we rested. The journey took about 2.5 hours one way.

Sometimes we stopped to take pictures of beautiful places.

The Pyrenees are of course very beautiful.

The valley itself too.

And the villages in the mountains are also amazingly charming.

The temples were built not so well. Most of these buildings have not survived to our time, I suspect because of the quality of construction.

It is believed that they were built by specially called architects from Lombardy. Anyway, the style is very similar to the old Italian churches.

Early Romanesque frescoes have been preserved in the temples. However, now they are not there. All of them are in the National Museum of Catalonia, in Barcelona.

There are only ten churches, and they are located in nine villages. Some of the villages are located in the mountains above the valley.

Near the temples, as expected, there are village cemeteries.

Since we were too lazy to climb the narrow, rural serpentines into the mountains, and time was in a hurry, we did not look at all nine villages, we looked at only three.






Having got an idea of ​​what the village medieval churches were like, we drove back.
And of course we went for a bite to eat.

The existence of various architectural styles in Spain is due to the fact that there was a constant shift of nationalities and various religions. At a time when colorful Moorish buildings were being created in the south of the country, the Romanesque style gradually began to supplant Gothic in the country's server.

Romanesque architecture

About where the beginnings of the Romanesque style first appeared, there are discussions today. Many are inclined to believe that Romanesque buildings began to appear in Andalusia as early as the 1st millennium. And some believe that in the 9th century, the Romanesque style in architecture began to appear in Catalonia. Such buildings gradually began to spread deep into the peninsula as the Moors were pushed to the south of the country. The Romanesque style was most evident in the construction of complex temple complexes.

A particularly large number of such structures can be found in the movement of pilgrims along the path of Camino de Santiago. In an area where the influence of the Moors was very strong, the buildings of the Romanesque style show clear features of the Mudéjar style in buildings built not of stone, but of brick. It is also worth noting that new elements of Byzantine architecture appear in the buildings of the Romanesque style, which penetrated the territory of Spain from Italy. The most striking building of this type can be considered the cathedral in Zamora.

Features of the Romanesque style in Spain

Photo: Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela

Determining whether a building belongs to the Romanesque style is quite simple. First of all, you need to look for semicircular arches, as well as simple elements in the form of a rainbow, which can be found anywhere: doors, windows, on the facade. The ceiling in such buildings is represented by a domed vault. Such simple buildings looked impressive because of their massiveness.

Gradually, simple Romanesque buildings began to acquire elegance, this is most clearly seen in the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, which was built in the 12th century. It is most easy to recognize Romanesque buildings in the north of Spain, but in other regions this direction has slightly different features. For example, in Segovia, which is located closer to the north, open galleries appear at the side facades in Romanesque buildings.

In Catalonia, builders and architects really liked to use "overweight" bell towers. Today in Spain you can find several bridges that are built in this style.

Spain and Gothic style

Photo: Monastery of La Oliva in Navarre

If the history of the appearance of the Romanesque style on the territory of the country is not too clear, then there is no doubt about the Gothic direction. This kind of architects came from France at the end of the 12th century. For 4 centuries, the influence of Gothic architecture either subsided or increased. There was a mixing of different styles and trends depending on certain conditions.

One of the first examples of the Gothic style can be considered the monastery of La Oliva in Navarre, which was built in 1170. The gloominess of such a building was slightly smoothed out by round rose windows. Subsequently, in Spain they tried to reproduce and adopt the High Gothic, which was implemented in the construction of the temples of Northern France, but it simply did not work out to get full compliance and development.

The cathedrals in Burgos and Toledo can be considered as striking examples of high Gothic, which were begun to be built around the 1220s. Here there are lancet arches, high naves, stained-glass windows, various weaving. The cathedral in Leon (founded in 1255) is also very close in execution to the Gothic style. But no matter how hard the Spanish architects tried, the cathedrals were not as high, and the windows were not as large as it turned out in France.

Gothic style in Spain

Photo: Cloister of the Cathedral in Pamplona

In Iberia, Gothic architecture was so diverse and many-sided that it is very difficult to talk about any special Spanish style. It contained the main elements inherent in the Gothic style in a general sense:

• Lancet arches;
• Buttresses significantly changed their outer world;
• Wall styles were higher.

During this period, the presence of stone openwork carving and original stone lace became an integral element. It goes without saying that in Spain only ready-made elements of the Gothic style were used, Spanish architects also introduced their innovation - a star vault. An excellent example is the central dome of the cathedral in Burgos and the cloister of the cathedral in Pamplona.

Gothic style in Spanish regions

Photo: Cathedral in Palma de Mallorca

It is worth noting that in regions remote from large cities, the Gothic style will receive a slightly different implementation. A unique style in the Gothic direction has developed in Catalonia. Here, spatial freedom and breadth of views of architects became a feature. Unpretentious cathedrals of these structures are very reminiscent of huge caves.

According to the type of temples of the zonal plan, a spacious cathedral was built in Palma de Mallorca. In order to organize the support of the arches of such spatial buildings, reliable supports were needed, which in Catalan buildings were hidden in side chapels, and did not protrude, as was traditional in gothic style. The Barcelona Cathedral, which was built in 1298, was originally planned to be spacious and bright, but this could not be realized due to a number of circumstances:

• General workload of space;
• Poor lighting due to small windows.

The building has a constant sense of darkness.

But the Basilica of Santa Maria del Mar is the most successful example of Catalan Gothic architecture.

In other regions of the country, Gothic architecture is more eclectic. In Aragonese buildings, a mixture of styles and trends is most often observed, in particular Gothic and Mudéjar. Such structures can be considered:

• the Cathedral of La Seo in Saragon, which was built in the Romanesque style and then completed with a dome and geometric ornament;
• The cathedral in Tarragana is a Romanesque building, which was complemented by a square brick arch.
• In the Seville Cathedral, there is a mixture of Gothic and Moorish elements at once.

Effective completion of the Gothic style

Photo: Cathedral of San Juan de los Reyes

At the end of the 15th century, the Gothic style was already dying out, but it was during this period that a certain surge in construction took place: a new late Gothic Isabelino style was formed, which was named after Queen Isabella.

Many trends were mixed here: Gothic, Moorish and Romanesque style, and also the ideas of the Renaissance were added, which began to be taken to Spain. Box flattened arches and fanciful facades began to appear in buildings. A striking example of the Isabelino style can be seen in the Cathedral of San Juan de los Reyes, which was designed by the French architect Juan Guas. This new style for Spain did not last long, soon the queen herself began to welcome a new direction - the ideas of the Renaissance.

Features of the construction of Spanish castles for defense

Photo: Bellver Castle in Mallorca

No country can boast that during the heyday of the Gothic Romanesque style, a huge number of castles were built. The bulk of the fortifications were built in Castile. Some of them actually represented really powerful defense structures, and some outwardly only seemed strong and reliable.

The latter, when the time came for real battles, simply fell apart. Many wealthy Spaniards preferred to build for personal residence not residences, but defensive structures, both false and really reliable. Very often, Moorish fortresses became the basis for construction.

The castles did not differ in any special composition. Most of them were built in accordance with the traditional canons of defensive structures. In the center of the overall structure there was one central fortress; during this period, other more advanced models began to appear in Europe.

One of the brightest surviving examples is located in Mallorca - this is a castle made in the Gothic style of Bellver Castle. This is a round structure that softens and decorates lancet arches.

As in the temple buildings, Moorish elements were also present in the castles. A model in the Mudéjar style can be considered the brick castle of Coca near Segovia, built in the 15th century. While the wealthy Spaniards hid behind the walls of their castles, the Spanish cities were also fortified and strengthened. In the 11th century, a powerful fortress wall with 88 towers was built, which today is located near the city of Avil on the Meset. During the heyday of the Gothic, cities such as Toledo, Morella, Santa Fe began to be surrounded by walls.

Not only churches and castles

Do not think that only castles and churches were built in Spain. The presence of the Spanish architectural style is also seen in the construction of more prosaic castles. Lancet arches and vaulted ceilings began to be found in more casual buildings. For example, the silk exchange in Valencia, which was built in the 15th century, is decorated with a star-shaped vault and slender columns.

In the labyrinths of the Gothic Quarter of Barcelona, ​​you can find several buildings in the Gothic style, which were practically untouched by time, they were previously intended for the use of the city authorities.

You can see the architecture of Spain in the Gothic and Romanesque style in this author's video:

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Spain, in terms of architecture and urban planning, is a vivid example of a mixture of styles, traditions, and cultural characteristics. It is difficult to say what fascinates here more - modernity or historical monuments. It is only clear that it is simply impossible to imagine one without the other. The architecture of Spain is so harmonious and unique that you can realize it only once having arrived here.

Historical background

The formation of the appearance of this country in different eras was influenced by its geographical location, which contributed to numerous wars of conquest. The successive rulers and peoples invariably left their mark on the arrangement of cities. The beginning was laid in the period of the birth of Iberian culture, then came the Romans, the Arabs, and only then the Spaniards established their rule.

Today, this country has become a symbiosis of the architectural traditions of the ancient Roman era, Moorish, directly Spanish and modern times.

The architecture of Spain can be characterized by the following theses:

• it reflected the influence of numerous wars;
• a mixture of styles, both within cities and within one architectural structure. An example is the Sagrada Familia, which combines Romanesque features and Catalan Art Nouveau;
• a huge number of historical sites are included in the UNESCO heritage list;
• almost every town in Spain can boast of ancient monuments of architecture.

An even larger number of relics that have been preserved from the past, today only Italy, which occupies the first place in this list, has.

Roman period architecture

Spanish architecture during the period of ancient Roman rule was distinguished by majestic and very powerful structures. Everything here was built to emphasize the strength and superiority of the empire over other states. Particularly noteworthy in this regard is Tarragona - the oldest capital and the first Roman settlement on the peninsula.

Its oldest structure is considered to be the fortress wall, preserved from the 3rd century of the prehistoric era. This also includes a circus, an amphitheater in which gladiator fights took place, the Devil's Bridge aqueduct, the Cathedral of Santa Maria.

The main features of the buildings of this period can be called:

• monumentality;
• strict symmetry;
• the desire to create buildings that were utilitarian in nature and served the needs of the Romans rather than the exaltation of the nation;
• a large number of decorations;
• lush interior decoration;

The buildings of that era are characterized by the presence of numerous arches, domes, vaults, columns.

Moorish heritage

The Moorish architecture of Spain takes us to a fairy-tale world, which has become the embodiment of the unreality of what is happening and the airiness of the structures. The distinctive features of Arab urban planning were:

• oriental ornament;
• the use of letters of the Arabic alphabet as decoration (depicting figures of people was forbidden by religion);
• domes and arches.

You can recognize the Moorish palace by its gardens and parks. Given the reverent attitude of this people, who grew up in the desert, to water, its structures are accompanied by a variety of fountains, ponds and courtyards, which are conducive to contemplation, a leisurely lifestyle and enjoyment of the beauty of nature. The palaces of Arab architecture were characterized by amazing sophistication and luxury.

To get an impression of the period of rule of the Moors in Spain, you should definitely visit:

• Toledo - Alcazar Palace;
• Cordoba - Mesquite Mosque;
• Seville - Harilda minaret.

The heyday of this direction in the VIII-XI centuries.

The architecture in Spain of the XI-XIII centuries is marked by new trends in the construction of various buildings. In many ways, this stage was influenced by the Reconquista - the struggle against Arab dominance in Spanish lands. A significant moment in this period is the influence of the church on all spheres of life, including architecture.

Characteristic of the Romanesque era was the construction of impregnable fortresses and religious buildings. Appearance buildings becomes quite severe, but at the same time does not lose its picturesqueness. Stones are used as building materials, ornate stucco molding serves as decoration, impregnable battlements and numerous watchtowers serve as protection.

Gothic

The transition from the XIII century to the XIV century was the beginning of a new trend in architectural art, which was called "Gothic". Its creators are considered to be Cistercian monks, whose main life principles were asceticism and spiritual perfection.

Experts distinguish such features of this direction:

• lancet vaults;
• chapels;
• the growth of the building in width;
• smooth walls with vague ornaments.

Examples of this style are the Church of Santa Maria del Mar (Barcelona), the Cathedral (Leon), the monastery of Sao Tome (Avila).

rebirth

The Renaissance period, which immediately followed the Middle Ages, made its own changes to the external decoration of Spanish cities. In time, it coincided with the XIV-XVI centuries and, judging by the name, meant a return to ancient values ​​and forms.

The architects of Spain again turned their attention to the Roman buildings and revived the main postulates of their engineering structures - strict geometry, symmetry, proportions.

The complex composition of medieval buildings was diluted with orderly rows of columns, pilasters, and arches. All 13 cities that appear on the UNESCO list have preserved evidence of this era. For example, the house-museum of Cervantes in Alcala or the monastery of San Bernardo.

The Spanish style in architecture also has its own specific direction, which arose as a result of the fusion of the features of the Arabic style, the Renaissance and the Gothic. Its distribution coincided with the XV-XVI centuries. The authorship belongs to the Muslims who continued to inhabit the Iberian Peninsula after the conquest by the Spaniards. At first, they still had the right to lead a way of life inherent in this people, to practice their religion.

The fall of Granada in the 15th century led to the forcible conversion of Muslims to the Christian faith. These historical events could not but affect the architecture of cities. Buildings built in this style are characterized by brickwork, horseshoe-shaped arches, vaulted ceilings, wooden ceilings, luxurious decor. A striking example of Mudéjar is the fortress wall of Avila.

Translated from Italian, this term means "bizarre", "strange". In time, the heyday of this style fell on the XVII-XVIII centuries. Its distinctive feature is the extraordinary splendor of decoration and architectural forms. It is characterized by massive colonnades, sculptures decorating facades, complex domes.

The Spanish Baroque was endowed with special features, which were largely shaped by the work of José Benito de Churriguera. Bizarre forms and chaotic decorative elements became signs of his architecture. The most striking example of the Baroque style was the Old and New Cathedral in Salamanca.

Modernity

The current appearance of Spanish cities began to gain special attention of the public only 20 years ago. Thanks to cities such as Bilbao and Valencia, the world saw that even today this country has much to be proud of.

The Agbar Tower, which is the most recognizable building in Barcelona, ​​was opened in 2005 as a symbol of the 21st century. The height of the building reaches 145 meters, the author of the project was the Frenchman Jean Nouvel.

Another landmark of today's era is the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia. Its construction was carried out thanks to the architect Santiago Calatrava, who was inspired by the French Futuroscope park and built a huge entertainment center in Valencia. The total area of ​​the building is 350 thousand square meters, which housed seven pavilions dedicated to various branches of art.

The modern architecture of Spain is also the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. For its construction, the most complex software was used, which is more characteristic of the aerospace industry.

Of course, the image of today's Spain continues to change, replenishing with more and more evidence of the progress of human capabilities, but it is just as impossible to imagine this country without ancient monuments as Europe without Spain itself.

Photo: Romanesque churches in the Val-de-Boille

Photo and description

In several small villages in the Val de Boi, located among the Pyrenees and belonging to the autonomous community of Catalonia, there are nine beautiful churches built in the Romanesque style. Located among the nature of incredible beauty, these churches were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000 and received the status of national historical and architectural monuments of Spain. The list includes the following nine churches: the church of San Felix in the village of Barruero, the church of San Juan de Boi in the village of Boi, the churches of Santa Maria and San Clemente in Tahuella, the hermitage of St. Kirk and the Church of the Nativity in Durro, the church of Santa -Eulalia in Enril la Vall, as well as the Church of Santa Maria de la Asuncion in Colle and the Basilica of Santa Maria, located in the village of Cardet.

The Romanesque churches of Val-de-Boille were erected and consecrated at the beginning of the 12th century. Time surprisingly practically did not touch the majestic buildings of these churches - through the centuries they managed to preserve and convey to us their images almost unchanged. Laid out of stone, with their powerful and majestic architecture, so characteristic of the architecture of the Romanesque period, these churches resemble fortresses. The inner walls of all nine churches are decorated with magnificent old frescoes dating back to around 1123. The frescoes have been partially restored and today they are considered among the best of that period.

In addition, I would like to add that the magnificent nature of this area and the charming unique flavor characteristic of Spanish villages will impress anyone, even the most sophisticated tourist who decides to visit these amazing places and get acquainted with the architecture of ancient Romanesque churches.