STAGE 15 - FRóMISTA to CARRIóN DE LOS CONDES

 The first town we came to after leaving Frómista was Población de Campos. The landscape was dominated by a busy road that runs parallel to the Camino. It wasn't until we were about to enter the town that we saw this beautiful little structure, the Ermita de San Miguel. The wooded area has been turned into a rest area with picnic tables. The Ermita dates from the 13th century. 

At this point we turned up a narrow street to see if we could find a food place. No luck. Like so many of the small towns along the Camino these towns appear deserted. The truth is that by the time we get to these towns most people are either at work or at home eating. We continued on through the town to this a 17th century bridge at which point we could decide between two paths...

One of the paths would continue along the road. The other would take us along a river and through fields. We opted for the more rural route. At the crossroad we met a couple from near Cannes, France. The wife spoke a little English. They also decided to take the less traveled route. They were behind us until we paused to take off our jackets. When they caught up with us she showed us a picture that she had taken of us. She thought that we looked cute with the bright backpacks.

It was nice to get away from the road and its noise. Here is the trail along the tree-lined river...

Eventually we looped back onto the main trail that paralleled the road. Eventually we made it to Villalcázar de Sirga...

that is home to the Iglesia de Santa María la Blanca.

Iglesia de Santa María la Blanca dates from the 12th century and follows the architectural style of Romanesque-Gothic. In the 13th century the church fell under the authority of the Knights Templar. By 1307 the church was one of 28 sites held by the order. Later, the church became the property of the Orden de Santiago. The church is home to the Virgen Blanca that inspired Alfonso X, el Sabio, to compose his Cantigas

The chapel of Santiago, illuminated by a beautiful rose window, was constructed in the  opened in the 14th century. In this space are three tombs built in the Gothic style. In them are the remains of the infante Felipe de Castile y Suabia, son of Fernando III, el Santo, and brother to Alfonso X, el Sabio; also Inés Rodríguez Girón and Juan de Pereira. 

Leaving Villalcázar de Sirga you come face to face with flat expanses of fields...

(See the snow-covered mountains in the background. Those are most likely part of the Cantabric Mountain Range.

We finally get to Carrión de los Condes. Here you can see one of the most outstanding examples of Romanesque architecture in the Portico of the Iglesia de Santiago that dates from 1160.

What makes it unique is the archivolt. Each of the figures represent a profession that was found in the town during the 12th century. The church's western façade offers a unique and engaging view of Medieval life. The entrance is formed by a semicircular arch door, with a figurative archivolt, in which the medieval trades of Carrión de los Condes are represented.

There are 24 figures, 22 human and 2 lions. They are represented from left to right:

1. a lion
2. bearded man with no arms;
3. a young man striking a ribbon on the anvil;
4. a man with globular container or phial embodying an alchemist;
5. a shoemaker cutting leather with huge scissors;
6. a potter or coiner;
7. a foundry or blacksmith;
8. a metal manipulator;
9. a man who raises his right hand towards the opposite shoulder carrying a mask, possibly a minstrel;
10. a blacksmith, who curiously looks Jewish because of the cap he wears and the curls that fall to the sides of his face;
11. a copyist notary;
12. a reading monk;
13. a harpist;
14. a judge pulling his beard and with the scepter symbol of his power;
15. a shoemaker;
16. a locksmith;
17. a man working on an anvil;
18. two warriors fighting each other;
19. a mourner;
20. a vihuelist;
21. a contortionist dancer;
22. a tailor and
23. another lion.

Two of the figures that I love are of armed men in battle. One of them is described as a Christian and the other as a Moor. This is a common image in Romanesque figures, many of them inspired by the story of Roland and Ferrugat from the Chronicle of the Pseudo-Turpin from the 12th century.

This archivolt rests on two columns that flank each side of the entrance. Both tout a zig-zag fluted column with rosettes and angels in relief. On both capitals there are two finely carved decorations with intertwined plant motifs and human and animal figures. These decorations symbolize the eschatological situation of souls trapped in a type of purgatory as a consequence of their sins making them unable to access heaven. Related to this iconography is that of the two capitals that have figurative representations.

The capital on the left might symbolize Good. In it you see a lion with its jaws agape, a symbol of the demon that tries to access the Soul of a Just man who is protected by two characters who with one hand scares away the evil beast. Another character pulls at the Soul of the Just by the hair. On the lateral side of the capital, the lion has already closed its jaws, the Soul of the Just is still protected by the angels and in its hands there is a book.

The capital on the right might symbolize Evil. It depicts the punishment of the sinner whose body, after being buried, is taken out of the tomb, leaving him naked, a symbol of shame. His nakedness also suggests his defenselessness to the tortures that he must suffer because of his sinfulness. The two dogs embody the constant torture that he must endure without relief or respite; being continually devoured.

I love the storytelling quality of architecture and, in this case, the historical chronicling of life in a small town on the Castilian plains.