Thursday, May 29, 2008

pilgrims

Santiago de Compostela - Galicia - Spain.Image via Wikipedia
I looked through my pictures and found the ones below which I haven't published yet. The current from the ground up project allows me to show the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela , situated in the city of the same name in Galicia, Spain. The cathedral is the reputed burial-place of Saint James the Great, one of the apostles. It is the destination of the Way of St. James , a major historical pilgrimage route since the Middle Ages.

A bit of history: the tomb of the apostle St James was discovered at the beginning of the ninth century and Kings Alfonso II and Alfonso III erected churches and founded monasteries. The cult of Santiago, however, had aroused the distrust of the Muslim vizier, Almanzor, who razed Compostela to the ground in 997 and took the bells off to Cordoba. Pilgrimage then reached the height of its popularity and Alfonso VI began construction of the Romanesque cathedral in 1075.

The cathedral was completed in 1211. The city and its cathedral, churches and monasteries were renovated during the Baroque period (17th century) to give them the appearance they have today. Source



When we visited the church, there was a big show by performance ice sculptors called "Fear no Ice"(check out the link for pictures of their amazing ice sculptures): they were working on reproducing parts of the cathedral's façade to the sound of party music. It was a great show - free of charge- to watch from the plaza.

And finally a look at St James from the ground up:



and after some editing we can see the apostle more closely:

Please note the scallop shell over his head, which has long been the symbol of the St James' Way.

For more pictures from the ground up visit JFargo's "My World in Pictures"

14 comments:

  1. Beautiful ! It's amazing what has been constructed centuries ago ! and today we have these glass cubicals ! and the only beautiful skyscrapers I saw in Chicago !
    I go to my painting course this morning to finish my painting of Rosie !

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  2. Modern technology can give us a bulding in much les time then it used to condtruct them -- but also with much less personality.

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  3. I've been there - although not for quite some time. It's gorgeous!
    xo
    LBC

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  4. Mar...this is what I love about other countries most. Things stay the same. I hate that we tear down and build new, when old is more than not, much more beautiful!

    Outstanding photos!

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  5. What a beautiful structure - the detail is amazing.

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  6. Oh my gosh! Beautiful! Just amazing! Thank GOD these old buildings still stand! It will be such a sad day when all we have left is the "new". I wonder if we will ever go back to creating elaborate architecture?

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  7. Absolutely beautiful! I love that this is also an informative post!

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  8. Wonderful building and excellent shots! The ice scuptures are very cool. They must not have lasted long... it looks like a beautiful, on the warmer side, day.

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  9. Wow I had never heard that explanation of the shell (a symbol we use a lot at Church). I'll have to see if I can get the same answer at Church ;)

    Beautiful Cathedral!

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  10. Wow, what an amazing cathedral. It's gorgeous! Stop by for the amazing adventures of Emma.

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  11. Fascinating post Mar and wonderful photographs.

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  12. Pretty impressive. Is it the conclusion of the pilgrimage? I read Shirley McCaine's book on it a long time ago.

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  13. Lovely pics! What a beautiful blu sky and amazing architecture. I learnt something too :)

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  14. i'm always impressed by ancient architecture... and your photo show the best there is in it!

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