Monday, April 14, 2008

San Cugat


We were in Sant Cugat on Sunday. This is a part of the handle of the door to the main church in the monastery....I find it intriguing.


The buildings have been largely and vastly reconstructed because in the early 1800's, after the monks were forced to flee, the local population largely destroyed the buildings. Out of revenge, out of poverty, out of retribution, to search for riches, goodies and easy building supplies, but mostly to find and destroy the documents that held them in serfdom on the land. They could finally, for the first time in generations, own the land they worked.


This is a modern concrete fabrication of the very damaged original pedestal for a column in the cloister,


And his back end too.


At the tops of all of the columns, the capitals, there were different carvings, each and every one unique. Some displaying incident in the life of Jesus, others animals, and others I know not what, I like this fellow though...he seems medieval and modern, and content and thoughtful.


This is the cloister itself, the pavings and diggings you can see in the middle are the remains of a paleoChristian church, which was itself built on the remains of a Roman villa. It's been a busy place for a long long time.

6 comments:

Beth said...

For someone as artistic as yourself, you are living in such a wonderful place.
Beautiful pictures - fascinating commentary.
(I'm getting an education via your experiences...)

elPadawan said...

Every time I see this kind of scultpures, it reminds me that back in the middle ages, when most people couldn't read, education was done by the clergy, using the sculptures as a support for their teachings :)

oreneta said...

Beth, glad you're enjoying it...we had a lovely day too.

elPadawan, the stained glass is stunning for that as well, though, strangely we are thinking in parallel lines on this, as I just posted about how Modern art speaks to us now, with symbols meaningful for us at this time, just as the medieval work spoke directly to them...the first power points, eh?

Hula Girl at Heart said...

Thank you so much for taking me on your journeys. It's the next best thing to being there and since I'm stuck in the midwest right now....

Xavier Macia said...

Hula, your very welcome...I in turn like your ourlook so much, and LOVE hearing stories about teen angel, or just your vents. I am not alone!

Anonymous said...

Wonderful photos. How neat to be able to go to such places with so much history.