Route of the Mudéjar Craftsmanship in the Vía de la Plata

Position

Leon province
Zamora province

Castilla y León stands out as the autonomous community with the highest concentration of roof trusses, and the southern part of the province of Leon boasts an unparalleled wealth of coffered ceilings. The little-known Mudéjar treasures scattered throughout western León, a region linked by the Silver Route (Vía de la Plata), a vital Hispanic communication corridor, are the driving force behind this initiative. It originated from a crowdfunding campaign to restore the coffered ceiling of the Church of Santiago in Valcabado del Páramo . This project has demonstrated to institutions that small, often overlooked heritage sites can be the driving force behind inland cultural tourism.

A total of thirteen Mudejar pieces, each with its own record, each with its own personal history, decorate this Mudejar route that is structured around the Silver Route , running through the north of the province of Zamora and the west of the Province of Leon.

There is no doubt, therefore, that the Hispanic Middle Ages were clearly influenced by the tangible and intangible culture of al-Andalus. Its tastes and customs shaped a landscape of coexistence that has endured to the present day, forged through a distinctly Hispano-Muslim fusion. All of this is channeled through this route and, with it, the exhibition " Framing Carpentry on the Silver Route ," a contribution from the Junta de Castilla y León to the project. This educational journey explores the unique features of our coffered ceilings, culminating in a video that encourages awareness and appreciation of the legacy of Nasrid art, which, contributing to the development of Mudéjar art, now graces the skies of León.

The polychrome interlacing reached its zenith with promotional contributions such as that made by Juan González de Zamora, canon of Leon Cathedral, to the roof structure of Santa Colomba de la Vega (the crown jewel of this route; its domed appearance symbolically creating a celestial vault); whose heraldic shield appears on one of the panels of the piece. Equally noteworthy are the interlaced patterns that decorate the presbyteries of Azares del Páramo , Mayre de Castroponce , and Grajal de Ribera . Specifically, in the case of Azares, there is a detail on its eastern panel depicting a crescent moon with a compass and a ruler below it. These elements, in that order, could be related to the ancestry of its creator and the identifying emblem of the master builders' guild. To this melting pot we should add the armories of Lordemanos and Saludes de Castroponce , with a rich ornamentation based on polychrome Gothic tradition concentrated in both presbyteries.

Nor are the Renaissance-style coffered ceilings, inspired by the Chapter House of the Hostal de San Marcos—such as those in Alija del Infantado and Valcabado —minor pieces. The Leonese section of this route concludes with the coffered ceilings of Riego de la Vega and San Félix de la Vega . The former features a well-fitted interlacing pattern in its portico, while the latter displays a Renaissance style whose sober network of squares concentrated in the central panel heralds the decline of these decorative solutions, giving way to the prevailing Baroque fashion. A prime example of this is the Church of Santa María in La Bañeza . Visitors can now admire exceptional Baroque vaults of plaster and lime, but it is curious to discover that behind them lies a coffered ceiling, similar in design to those in Alija and Valcabado.

And finally, in the Zamora section of the route, the roof structure of San Cristóbal de Entreviñas takes on special interest, with a central panel decorated with hexagonal coffers clearly inspired by the Italian Renaissance; or the eight-pointed lace wheels decorating the central panel of the roof structure of Villanueva del Azoague , which shows the skill and ingenuity of the carpenter to overcome a conditioned design; and what to say of that harmonious celestial vault that is recreated in the main chapel of Santa Colomba de las Carabias , in which eight clusters of muqarnas stand out, adorned with gold leaf, on which the stars that are concentrated in the eight panels of the dome "revolve".

Information about the route and guided tours of the Valcabado Interpretation Centre and coffered ceilings is available by appointment at +34 610 22 88 47 (Roberto). More details at: https://www.rutadelosartesonados.es/ This link will open in a pop-up window.

Image gallery

What to see?

Church of San EstebanMore information
The church was built in the XV century. Of Templar origin, the building has a beautiful coffered ceiling, jewel of the Mudejar style of the XVI century. In this temple, that stopped to be a parish in 1896,...
Church of Santa EulaliaMore information
To facilitate the incorporation of geometric frameworks in the roof reinforcements, the carpenters devised the ataujerada technique. It consisted of hiding the structure of the roofs with boards on which...
St. Mary's ChurchMore information
Upon entering the church of Santa María de La Bañeza, no one can imagine the wooden treasure that is hidden behind the vault of its central nave. And since the Baroque arrived in the Spanish arts in the...
St. Peter's ChurchMore information
The church of San Pedro de Lordemanos is presented as a magnificent testimony of the possibilities that carpentry offered for assembly and its adaptation to different needs and uses. In addition to the...
Church of the SaviorMore information
During the Middle Ages, along with the so-called Mudejar carpentry of intricate lacework, there coexisted another exclusively decorated with paintings. The possibility that carpentry offered to profile...
Church of Our Lady of CañoMore information
The most complex way to incorporate lacework into the deck armor was through the combed technique. The procedure was based on composing geometric designs with the construction elements of the roof, so...
St. Felix ChurchMore information
The 17th century marked the beginning of the slow decline of assembly carpentry, as Diego López de Arenas bitterly recalled in his Brief compendium ofwhite carpentry printed in Seville in 1633: "bad apprentices...
Church of Santiago ApóstolMore information
The master carpenters carried out their trade on an itinerant basis. Accompanied by the officers and apprentices of their workshop and provided with their work tools, they traveled to the different destinations...
Church of Santa Colomba de la VegaMore information
Church with mudéjar coffered ceilings from the 14th / 15th century that covers both the single nave and the main chapel, with an exuberant geometric decoration formed by loop wheels and striking paintings....