Logbook · 8 places

The monastery of San Martín de Castañeda

Galende, Sanabria, Zamora

1 Villages · 1 Monuments · 2 Nature · 1 Activities · 1 Curiosities · 2 Historical milestones

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The monastery of San Martín de Castañeda

Monument · Galende, Sanabria, Zamora

The monastery of San Martín de Castañeda stands on the slope of a mountain above the north shore of the lago de Sanabria, in the hamlet of the same name in the municipality of Galende (Zamora), and is one of the finest examples of Romanesque architecture in Zamora. Of Visigothic origin, it was restored around the year 916 by Abbot Martino and a group of Mozarabic monks who had come from San Cebrián de Mazote fleeing drought and plague, and who found sustenance in the lake's fisheries. In 1150 Alfonso VII granted the site to the monk Pedro Gutiérrez, who restored monastic life under the Rule of Saint Benedict as a daughter house of Carracedo; under that abbey's abbot, Martín IV, the present Romanesque church was built, already in the 12th century. Declared a Monumento Histórico-Artístico Nacional (Spain's top heritage designation at the time) on 3 June 1931, it today houses the visitor centre of the lago de Sanabria nature reserve.

Photo: sporras (CC BY-SA 2.0)

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