The French archaeologist Charles de Gerville first coined the term Romanesque (in French: roman) to refer to the stage of the Middle Ages that spanned from the decline of the Roman Empire to the century ; The term already existed related to languages ​​derived from Latin (Romance or Romance languages) and he used it in a letter addressed in 1818 to his friend Arcisse de Caumont, another French archaeologist who was the one who disseminated it in his Essai sur l'architecture du moyen âge, particulièrement en Normandie (Essay on medieval architecture, particularly in Normandy), dated 1824.

At the dawn of the century, art historiography restricted the chronology, placing the Romanesque period from the end of the century to the introduction of Gothic. Since the term Romanesque was coined as a stylistic concept without nuances, historians sought a greater and more descriptive definition, subdividing this generalized concept into three well-defined stages: First Romanesque, Full Romanesque and Late Romanesque.

Contenido

El románico corresponde a una época en que la cristiandad se encontraba más segura y optimista. Europa había asumido en los siglos anteriores la decadencia del esplendor carolingio soportando al mismo tiempo los ataques normandos y húngaros (los magiares llegaron hasta Borgoña) que destruyeron bastantes de sus monasterios. En España habían sido nefastas las campañas de Almanzor, arrasando y destruyendo también gran parte de monasterios y pequeñas iglesias. A finales del siglo en Europa una serie de hechos estabilizadores dieron ocasión para que reinara el equilibrio y la tranquilidad, serenándose en gran medida la situación política y la vida de la cristiandad. Las principales fuerzas surgieron con los Otones y el Sacro Imperio junto con la figura del Papa cuyo poder se hace universal y ostenta la facultad de coronar en Roma a los emperadores. En España, los reyes cristianos llevaban su Reconquista bastante avanzada y firmaban pactos y pautas de convivencia con los reyes musulmanes. En este contexto surgió en toda la cristiandad el espíritu de organización de los monjes que tuvieron en Cluny un ejemplo a seguir. Los monasterios e iglesias que se construyeron a partir de estos años acondicionaron su arquitectura a una mayor duración en el tiempo frente a posibles ataques, tanto de enemigos, como de incendios y causas naturales. En toda Europa se extendió el uso de la bóveda frente al cubrimiento con madera. Se restablecieron las comunicaciones y el acercamiento entre distintos monarcas europeos así como las relaciones con Bizancio.

El legado romano de caminos y calzadas sirvió para mayor comunicación entre los numerosos monasterios surgidos y lo mismo ocurrió para las peregrinaciones a los Santos Lugares o a pequeños enclaves de gran devoción popular. Debido a las mismas circunstancias, el mundo del comercio se vio incrementado y todo este trasiego de gente llevó y difundió los nuevos estilos de vida entre los que se encontraba la renovadora forma del estilo románico. Los santuarios, catedrales, etc. se construyeron en estilo románico a lo largo de cerca de dos siglos y medio.

Background and historical context in Spain

In Spain[7]​ Romanesque art entered through Catalonia, through the lands of the Hispanic March. The Christian kingdoms and counties of the northern half of the peninsula had remained faithful over the centuries to the traditional Hispano-Roman and Visigothic heritage, which in architecture had evolved into its own and ephemeral art that lasted until the arrival of the Romanesque in the 2nd century. Art historiography has traditionally given the name pre-Romanesque to these constructions, but more modern historians were able to see in these buildings their own style that could not be considered a precursor to the Romanesque. These are Asturian Art[8]​ and Mozarabic Art or, according to the most modern historiography, repopulation art.

Asturian art developed over the centuries and in the times of the Asturian kings with Hispano-Roman and Gothic solutions and Carolingian and Byzantine contributions.[9]​.

In the century and under the reign of Alfonso II, the warlike situation of the first Muslim pushes subsided and with the help of the progressive establishment of monasteries, repopulation began from the north towards the Plateau (this repopulation expanded in the century), and from the south by the Mozarabs towards the Plateau and further north, including the Catalan lands. This repopulation will reach its zenith during the reigns of Alfonso VI and Alfonso VII. Most of these repopulation monasteries were transformed with the arrival of the Romanesque. In many of them only a few Mozarabic vestiges remained and in others the entire factory remained, such as in San Miguel de Escalada.

The alarming turn of the millennium with fears of great disasters and an apocalyptic end to the world manifested itself in Spain in the form of terrible clashes, first with the Norman incursions into Galician lands, where several cities were razed and looted, and then with the attacks and raids of the dangerous Almanzor, which in its wake looted and burned a considerable number of towns in the Christian kingdoms and counties. After these years of great instability, the Christian kings and counts were able to think again about the advance of the Reconquista and repopulation. The pilgrimages of the Camino de Santiago protected by the kingdoms of Navarra and especially Aragon were resumed, which gave rise to the establishment of Romanesque Christian architecture, which left its presence throughout the century. Later, the great relationship and friendship of Alfonso VI with the monks of Cluny, the marriage of his daughters with Burgundian princes and the policy of this king open to European renovations, resulted in the consolidation of Romanesque as an art to follow not only on the Camino de Santiago but in the rest of the lands governed by this king.

In Catalonia, the true promoter of the Romanesque was Abbot Oliba, who in 1008 was abbot of the monasteries of Ripoll and San Miguel de Cuixá. He traveled to Rome on several occasions and it must have been through Italian lands where he learned about the construction work of the Lombard stonemasons, whom he introduced to his Catalan land, where the group or groups of stonemasons began to build or rebuild countless churches in the Romanesque style but with Lombard characteristics and ornamentation.[10] In addition to Lombard techniques, the initial Catalan architecture was mixed with indigenous, Visigothic and Mozarabic traditions. A good example can be shown in San Pedro de Roda, consecrated in 1022.

This first Lombard Romanesque also spread throughout Aragonese lands whose small rural churches were influenced at the same time by Hispanic traditions.

En la Edad Media el concepto de la palabra arquitecto tal y como se concebía entre los romanos se perdió totalmente dando paso a un cambio de nivel social. La tarea del antiguo arquitecto vino a recaer sobre el maestro constructor, un artista que en la mayoría de los casos tomaba parte en la propia construcción junto con la cuadrilla de obreros que tenía a sus órdenes. El maestro constructor era quien supervisaba el edificio (como lo hacía el antiguo arquitecto) pero al mismo tiempo podía ser un artesano, un escultor, carpintero o cantero.[11]​ Este personaje se educaba por lo general en monasterios o en grupos de logias masónicas gremiales. Muchos de estos maestros constructores fueron los autores de bellísimas portadas o pórticos, como el de la catedral de Santiago de Compostela hecho por el maestro Mateo o el pórtico de Nogal de las Huertas en Palencia, del maestro Jimeno"), o la portada norte de la iglesia de San Salvador "Iglesia de San Salvador (Ejea de los Caballeros)") de Ejea de los Caballeros (provincia de Zaragoza) del maestro de Agüero.

Toda obra arquitectónica románica se componía de su director (maestro constructor), un maestro de obras[12]​ al frente de un grupo numeroso formando cuadrillas de picapedreros, canteros, escultores, vidrieros, carpinteros, pintores y otros muchos oficios o especialidades, que se trasladaban de un lugar a otro. Estas cuadrillas formaban talleres de los que a veces salían maestros locales que eran capaces de levantar iglesias rurales. En este conjunto no hay que olvidar al personaje más importante, el mecenas o promotor, sin el cual la obra nunca se habría llevado a cabo.

Por los documentos que se han conservado en España sobre contratos de obras, litigios y otros temas, se sabe que en las catedrales se destinaba una casa o alojamiento para vivienda del maestro y su familia. Existen documentos de litigios en que se habla del problema de la viuda de algún maestro donde reclama para sí y los suyos dicha casa a perpetuidad. Este hecho llegó en algún caso a suponer un verdadero conflicto, pues era necesario que el maestro heredero de la obra ocupase la vivienda.

En algunos casos los maestros constructores tenían que comprometerse con la obra de por vida, si ésta era de larga duración, como fue el caso del maestro Mateo con la construcción de la catedral de Santiago, o el maestro Ramon Llambard (o Raimundo Lambardo) con la catedral de Santa María de Urgel. Existía una norma exigida en los contratos que los maestros debían cumplir siempre: su presencia diaria a pie de obra y el estricto control de los trabajadores y de la marcha del edificio. Para la preparación de materiales y labra de la piedra se edificaba siempre una casa de obra. Muchos documentos[13]​ del siglo hablan de esta casa:.

The stonemasons

They formed the bulk of workers in the erection of the building. The number of stonemasons could vary according to the local economy. Some of these figures are known, such as that of the Old Cathedral of Salamanca, where between 25 and 30 worked. Aymeric Picaud in his Codex Calixtinus provides the information:.

These stonemasons and the rest of the workers were exempt from paying taxes. According to their specialization, they were distinguished into two groups: those who were dedicated to a special work of high quality (true sculptor artists) and who went at their own pace, leaving their finished work in place and waiting to be placed in the building and those who were permanent workers, who raised the buildings stone by stone and placed in due time those quality pieces or reliefs carved by the first group.

This way of working could give rise to a chronological gap in the pieces placed over time, a gap that in many cases has become a big problem for historians when dating a building.

There was also a group of unskilled workers who worked on whatever they were told. In many cases these people offered their work or service as an act of piety because as Christians they were aware that they were collaborating in a great work dedicated to their God. In any case, they received remuneration that could be by day or by piece.") In the documents, many names appear in lists of wages that were not arbitrary but were well regulated.

Among the Cistercians they were known as ponteadores gangs,[14]​ composed of laymen or monks who moved from one region to another, always under the direction of a professional monk, whose work consisted of leveling land, opening roads, or building bridges.

Anonymity and signature of the artists

Most Romanesque works are anonymous in the sense of lacking a signature or document that proves authorship. Even if the work is signed, specialist historians sometimes have difficulty distinguishing whether reference is made to the true author or the promoter of the work. Other times, however, the signature is followed or preceded by an explanation that clarifies whether it is one character or another. Arnau Cadell made it very clear in a capital of Sant Cugat: This is the image of the sculptor Arnau Cadell who built this cloister for posterity.

The same as Rodrigo Gustioz wanted to immortalize himself for his financing of an arch in Santa María de Lebanza: This arch was made by Rodrigo Gustioz, a man from Valbuena, a soldier, pray for him.

And in a capital appears the news of another promoter:.

In other cases it is the systematic study of sculpture together with architecture that makes historians draw conclusions. Thus, it is known that in the cathedral of Lérida "Catedral de la Seo Vieja (Lérida)") Pere de Coma worked as master builder from 1190 to 1220, but during that period the presence of several well-differentiated sculpture workshops is detected. The same study carried out in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela suggests that Maestro Mateo was the director of the factory and director of successive workshops that present a stylistic evolution carried out by different hands but under the same coherent direction.[15]​.

The fact that most of the Romanesque works have remained anonymous has led to the development of the theory that the artist considered that he was not an appropriate person to capture his name in the works dedicated to God. But, on the one hand, the few civil works that are preserved do not appear signed either and on the other, such an opinion is counteracted by a long list that could be given of artists who do sign their works, among which the following stand out:

• - Raimundo de Monforte, who appears in documentation from 1129 contracted to build the cathedral of Lugo.

• - Pedro Deustamben, who appears in a funerary epigraph of San Isidoro de León as the builder of the vaults.

• - Raimundo Lambard or Lambardo, who worked since 1175 in the cathedral of Urgel.

• - The masters Bernard the Elder, Roberto and Esteban who intervened in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

• - Master Pere de Coma, who worked at the end of the century on the cathedral of Lérida "Catedral de la Seo Vieja (Lérida)").

• - Master Micaelis"), who worked in several churches and hermitages in the north of Palencia, and left his portrait working in the church of San Cornelio and San Cipriano in Revilla de Santullán.

The list could be continued with many more names that appeared either on the stone itself as a signature, or in contracting documents, as a demonstration that making themselves known was neither prohibited nor discouraged.[16] What is difficult to distinguish in many cases is the range of their trade since sometimes they could be architects, specialized stonemasons or sculptors of certain pieces. All of them used to be called and they all developed their craft thanks to the desire and mandate of the promoters and patrons.

Promoters and patrons

In the world of the Romanesque, both the promoter of the works, the patron and the financier are the true protagonists of the architectural work or the professional of carrying it out with mathematical rigor) and they are the ones who stimulate and enhance the projects. The promoters were also responsible for hiring and calling the best artists and architects who worked thanks to their drive and enthusiasm. Especially in sculpture and painting, the artist was totally subject to the will of the powerful patrons and promoters, without whose intervention the work would never have been carried out. The Romanesque artist adapted to the will of these characters, giving the work the best of his craft and settling for the satisfaction of a job well done without having any desire or suspicion of being able to acquire world fame as it began to develop from the Renaissance. The pride of a job well done and the recognition of their colleagues and patrons was the greatest reward and that is why sometimes this pride led them to express it in a very simple way in one of their finished works.

In Spain, the kings and a minority of the nobility early implemented the new Romanesque trends (which brought with them a Benedictine renewal and an acceptance of the Roman liturgy), while another part of the nobility and the majority of bishops and monks remained clinging to the old customs and the Hispanic liturgy. However, the Romanesque triumphed completely and this was mainly due to the patrons and promoters who carried out great works from which the new style was developed throughout the northern half of the Iberian Peninsula.

Abbot Oliba: This character was a patron, promoter and great promoter of Romanesque art in Catalonia from a very early date. In the year 1008 he was appointed abbot of the monastery of Ripoll and the monastery of Cuixá and ten years later he was appointed bishop of Vich. His trips to Rome (1011 and 1016) and his contacts with Frankish monasticism led to his knowledge of the Roman liturgy and its introduction into the Catalan Church. The Benedictine reform of Cluny had greatly influenced Cuixá with whom Oliba maintained close relations. Oliba therefore adopted Cluny's standards, both in architecture and in customs, and under his patronage and direction the major renovations, new buildings or in other cases simple extensions were carried out to adapt to the needs of the new times. Abbot Oliba tried to be present in all these firsts: at consecrations, meetings in which matters concerning a construction were discussed, etc. Oliba, in a period between 1030 and 1040,[17]​ was the promoter of such important buildings as:.

• - Church of San Vicente de Cardona, completely redesigned.

• - Monastery of Montserrat and Montbuy.

• - Monasteries of Ripoll, Cuixá, San Martín de Canigó, Vich, in whose works he intervened personally and directly.

En España no se distinguen fácilmente escuelas geográficas de arquitectura como ocurre en Francia, porque todos los tipos que pueden darse aparecen mezclados. Sin embargo pueden presentarse algunos ejemplos de edificios que siguen claramente, si no en su totalidad sí en gran parte, algunas de estas escuelas francesas:.

• - Escuela de Auvernia, con la catedral de Santiago de Compostela y la Basílica de San Vicente "Basílica de San Vicente (Ávila)") en Ávila.

• - Escuela de Poitou, con Santo Domingo de Soria "Iglesia de Santo Domingo (Soria)") y la mayoría de las iglesias catalanas del siglo , como San Pedro de Roda y San Pedro de Galligans.

• - Escuela de Perigord, cuyos ejemplares pertenecen ya a la transición hacia el gótico, como la colegiata de Toro (salvo la cúpula que es de influencia bizantina).

• - Ejemplos de las escuelas de arquitectura en España.

• - Basílica de San Vicente (Ávila) "Basílica de San Vicente (Ávila)") (escuela de Auvernia).

• - Iglesia de Santo Domingo "Iglesia de Santo Domingo (Soria)") de Soria (escuela de Poitou).

• - Nave de la iglesia del monasterio de San Pedro de Roda (escuela de Poitou).

• - Portada de la Colegiata de Toro (escuela de Perigord).

Local variants

Each kingdom, region or geographical region of the peninsula, as well as some human events (such as the Camino de Santiago), marked a characteristic style influenced by the geographical environment itself, by tradition, or simply by the teams of hired stonemasons and builders who moved from one place to another. As a consequence of this, in the Romanesque architecture of Spain we can speak of Catalan Romanesque, Aragonese Romanesque, Palencian Romanesque, Castilla y León Romanesque, etc.

Another circumstance to take into account is the survival of the Mudejars in the towns, who formed groups of workers and artists who gave a very special stamp to the buildings. It is what is known as brick Romanesque or Mudejar Romanesque.

In Spain, as in the rest of the Western Christian world, Romanesque art developed during three stages with their own characteristics. Historiography has defined these stages with the names first Romanesque, full Romanesque and late Romanesque or also called late Romanesque.

• - First Romanesque:[18]​ its architecture comprises a well-defined geographical area that runs from northern Italy, Mediterranean France, Burgundy and Catalan and Aragonese lands in Spain. It developed from the end of the century to the middle of the century, except in isolated places. In this Romanesque period there was no painting or miniature or monumental sculpture.

• - Full Romanesque: it developed from the East to Lisbon and from southern Italy to Scandinavia. It spread thanks to monastic movements, the unity of Catholic worship with the Roman liturgy and communication routes through roads. It began to take off towards the first half of the century and continued until the middle of the century following the route of the Camino de Santiago along which new trends arrived, consisting, above all, of the complication of the ornamentation of doors and the great importance of painting. The first friezes and radial figures appeared in the archivolts, the culmination of which began in 1150, and monumental sculpture was manifested in doorways and tympanums and in the decoration and carving of the capitals, moldings, imposts, etc. The buildings were built vaulted. The best examples are given in the so-called pilgrimage churches that in Spain are represented in the cathedral of Santiago and are also installed in repopulation territories.

• - Late Romanesque: chronologically it includes from the end of the full Romanesque until the first quarter of the century in which Gothic art begins to triumph and which will last in some places until the middle of the century. The architecture and construction techniques will be mixed with the Gothic until the triumph of this new art whose ornamentation will be totally different from the Romanesque. For some time Romanesque techniques (buttresses, semicircular arches, etc.) will coexist with clearly Gothic contributions.

• - Apses of the Ripoll monastery, an early example of the first Romanesque style.

• - Church of San Vicente de Cardona (1029-1040) in the walled enclosure of the Cardona castle, in Cardona (Barcelona), one of the best testimonies of the first Catalan Romanesque.

• - Nave of the church (1174-1225) of the Santes Creus monastery, an example of full Catalan Romanesque.

En lo concerniente a España, los edificios románicos religiosos no alcanzaron nunca la monumentalidad de las construcciones francesas, o de las construcciones que más tarde levantaría el arte gótico. Los primeros edificios tenían gruesos muros y pequeños vanos por los que entraba del exterior una tenue luz. Después hubo una evolución en la construcción de los muros que permitió aligerarlos y abrir ventanas más grandes.

Los edificios monásticos fueron los más numerosos compartiendo importancia con las catedrales. En las ciudades surgieron iglesias y parroquias y en las localidades pequeñas se fueron levantando un sinfín de pequeñas iglesias conocidas como románico rural.

The materials

The most precious but also the most expensive material was stone. The stonemasons were in charge of carving it with the chisel and always detecting the good side of the block; Thus they turned it into ashlars that were generally arranged in horizontal rows and other times, on edge. Hard rocks were almost always used. Masonry was also used, with carved stone in the corners, windows and doors. If the stone was difficult to obtain, because the corresponding geographic location lacked quarries, or because it was very expensive at certain times, fired brick, "Slate (rock)" slate, or any type of ashlar were used. The final finish was paint and plaster, both for the stone and for the masonry and the other materials, in such a way that, once the walls were painted, it could not be distinguished if there was one material or another underneath. Color in Romanesque architecture was widespread, the same as it had been in Roman buildings.[22]​.

The foundations

Taking into account the type of building that was going to be built, the materials that were going to be used and the terrain that would support it, medieval builders did a complete preliminary study for the foundation. First, the trenches were dug very deep and filled with stones and rubble. The ditches were distributed by virtue of the walls that would go over them and others were made transversely to join together the bays "Crujía (architecture)") and reinforce the pillars of the transverse arches. The foundations constituted an entire network that practically outlined the floor plan of the temple, thus differentiating it from the isolated foundation to support pillars used in the Gothic style. In some destroyed churches, nothing remains but this foundation, providing archaeologists with good study material. With these remains of foundations exposed to light, it is possible to know approximately the thickness of the walls, although it is known that in this sense the builders exaggerated quite a bit and made the trenches excessively deep and the foundations excessively thick for fear of collapses.

Vaults, domes and roofs

In the first Romanesque period, many of the rural churches were still covered with wooden roofs, especially in Catalonia and especially in the Boí valley, whose Romanesque renovation of old churches was carried out by Lombard builders who covered the gabled naves with a wooden structure, absolutely respecting the old traditions of this region. However, the apse was always finished in these churches with an oven vault.

Throughout the century, the "Crujía (architecture)" naves were covered with the barrel, half-barrel or quarter-barrel vault, a resource used in the Romanesque throughout Europe, and later the groin vault was used. In Catalonia these barrel vaults were used without reinforcements, while in Castilla y León the transverse arches were used as support. The use of the groin vault (originated by the perpendicular cut of two barrel vaults) had been forgotten and was taken up again by the great master builders. The groin vault in turn gave way to the ribbed vault, a very common resource in Gothic architecture.

There was also the type of vault called helical, used exclusively in the stairs of the towers. Examples are given in San Martín de Frómista, San Pedro de Galligans and San Salvador de Leyre among others.

In the cloisters of monasteries and cathedrals, corner vaults were built, which are those that resulted from the meeting of two groups of a cloister. The solutions for this type of vaults were not very easy, so the builders resorted to tricks and dissimulations that gave them a good result that was very apparent to the naked eye.

At the meeting of the main nave and the transept, the domes with a dome were raised, the center of which was pierced with a lantern "Lantern (architecture)") to give way to the outside light. The domes of Spanish Romanesque architecture achieved great importance. The construction of domes was introduced whose drum "Drum (architecture)") rested on a square with the help of the horns "Trumpet (architecture)"). The introduction of this system was due to three influences:

• - The path from the East, through communications with Byzantium and other places, of a religious, political or commercial nature.

• - The influence of the groups of Lombard builders, masters in developing the dome on squinches. A large number of these domes spread throughout the counties of Catalonia, especially in the 19th century.

• - The Aquitanian influence, where the dome is a representative element.

The variety of construction of these domes is remarkable; can be seen:

• - Octagonal dome supported on squinches (especially in Catalonia).

• - Spherical dome on tubes, with or without nerves (in Aragon).

• - Spherical dome on tubes, without nerves (in the areas of Palencia, Cantabria and Soria).

• - Spherical dome on squinches, with nerves (in the lands of Segovia).

Arches

In Spain the most used and characteristic arch "Arco (construction)") was the semicircular one, although the horseshoe arch and the pointed arch were also used. The semicircular arch was used exclusively throughout the century and first half of the 19th century. If they wanted to reach greater heights, they were made very banked, as in San Juan de las Abadesas. Many arches were built bent[23]​ with the intention that they would acquire greater resistance. Later, on the doorways, the semicircular arches were formed with archivolts, that is, a succession of concentric arches decorated with simple moldings or with vegetal or geometric ornamentation.

Pointed arches are originally from the East; The exact date of its use in the Romanesque of Spain is unknown, although historians consider some dates based on buildings that contain in some of their areas one or several pointed arches that sometimes generate an entire vault. They are buildings that correspond to the first quarter of the century, such as the cathedral of Lugo and Santa María de Terrasa. The primitive use of these arches was as a construction element that provided many advantages. It was a great architectural advance that the Cistercian monks knew how to see from the beginning.

The horseshoe arch, although typical of previous times, was also used in some Spanish Romanesque buildings. It was an arch inherited from Visigothic architecture, especially in Catalonia due to the tradition of the Visigoths of Septimania (doors of Santa María de Porqueras, transverse arches of San Pedro de Roda), and also of Islamic influence, especially in Andalusia and Extremadura. Other examples with horseshoe arches are:.

• - Church of Santa María "Iglesia de Santa María (Santa Marta de Tera)") in Santa Marta de Tera (Zamora) in the access openings to the arms of the transept.

• - Ávila Cathedral, in the arches of the old triforium.

• - Basilica of Santa Eulalia de Mérida "Basilica de Santa Eulalia (Mérida)"), access door and inside the apses.

• - Church of San Miguel de Córdoba "Iglesia de San Miguel (Córdoba)"), in a side door and in the baptistery chapel.

• - Hermitage of San Martín in San Vicente de la Sonsierra (La Rioja).

The lobed arch#Lobed_arch "Arch (construction)") is quite common. It is an artistic way of presenting the semicircular arch and later the pointed one. In Spain these arches are of clear Islamic influence, with the old Mihrab of the Córdoba mosque as the main example.

• - Romanesque arches.

• - Romanesque window, Ciudad Rodrigo.

• - Horseshoe arch at the entrance to the Basilica of Santa Eulalia in Mérida "Basilica de Santa Eulalia (Mérida)").

• - Arch in a side door of the church of San Miguel de Córdoba "Iglesia de San Miguel (Córdoba)").

• - Pointed arch of the Seo Vieja (Lérida) "Seo Vieja (Lérida)").

Buttresses

Buttresses are thick, continuous, vertical walls that are placed on the sides of an arch or vault to counteract its thrust. They are also placed on the exterior walls of the naves of churches or cloisters. In Romanesque architecture they are always visible, being one of the elements that most characterize it, especially in Spanish architecture, except in the area of ​​Catalonia where the construction was made adopting a greater thickness of the walls.

The buttress has a prismatic shape that is usually maintained at its entire height, although there are some variants such as those that imitate a fluted pilaster with a capital (San Juan de Rabanera in Soria). Sometimes it offers a simple or complicated stairway with several diminishing bodies, in the Cuenca cathedral "Cathedral of Cuenca (Spain)") or in the Fitero monastery whose buttresses of the apses have a rectangular shape at the base and its profile changes capriciously.

Many of the monuments of Galicia offer buttresses joined together by an arch, thus forming a composite wall. An example can be seen on the side façade of the Santiago de Compostela cathedral.

• - Fluted pilaster buttress with capital (San Juan de Rabanera in Soria).

• - Buttress as a column base in the collegiate church of San Pedro de Cervatos.

• - Buttresses with different sections in the apse of the monastery of Santa María la Real (Fitero) "Monasterio de Santa María la Real (Fitero)").

• - Large buttresses in the rural church of San Martín de Mondoñedo (Lugo.

• - Buttresses in the Romanesque part of the Cuenca cathedral "Cathedral of Cuenca (Spain)").

• - Buttresses joined by an arch on the façade of the Platerías of the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

Covers

The buildings were covered with a roof that could be made of different materials:.

• - Stone (very common). These covers can still be seen in the Gallo tower of the Old Cathedral of Salamanca and in the Cathedral of Ávila.

• - Tile, a material that is always renewed because it does not resist the passage of time.

• - Glazed flakes, rare material. It is located on the spire of the tower of the Antigua "Iglesia de Santa María La Antigua (Valladolid)") of Valladolid.

• - Slate "Slate (rock)"), especially in places where this material is abundant, mainly in Galicia.

The towers

In Spanish buildings the towers can be seen located at different points of the church, on the sides, on the transept and in very special cases on the straight section of the apse, as occurs in the churches of the city of Sahagún#Churches "Sahagún (Spain)") in León. This placement was due to the fact that, as they were built of brick (a less consistent material than stone), they were looking for the place of greatest resistance, which was always the location of the apses. The façade with two towers is not very common and is usually seen only in temples of great importance.

The towers serve as bell towers, especially in the Romanesque of Castilla y León; They are the so-called turres Signorum. In many cases they were erected as defense towers, especially in conflictive border territories and their location depended on what they wanted to defend, thus the tower of the church of the monastery of Silos was placed defending the monastery and the tower of the monastery of San Pedro de Arlanza had great defensive importance for the entire enclosure. The warlike aspect of these Romanesque towers evolved and changed over time so that at present one can barely guess their purpose from other times. In many cases these towers rose close to the sides of the church, and even freestanding.

• - Romanesque towers.

• - Defensive tower of the church of the monastery of San Pedro de Arlanza.

• - Defensive tower of the church of the Silos monastery.

• - Defensive tower of the Zamora cathedral.

• - Romanesque-Mudejar tower over the straight section of the central apse in the Church of San Tirso (Sahagún) "Iglesia de San Tirso (Sahagún)").

• - Tower on the straight section of the church of San Lorenzo "Iglesia de San Lorenzo (Sahagún)") in Sahagún "Sahagún (Spain)").

Cattails

A belfry "Belfry (architecture)") is an architectural element that is generally built on the façade and which serves to house the bells "Bell (instrument)"), replacing a tower. It rises as a vertical continuation of the wall and the openings that will receive the bells open in it. The cattail is easier to erect and cheaper. In the Spanish Romanesque they were very numerous, especially in smaller churches of the rural Romanesque. They can have a single span or several staggered floors. They are generally finished in a point or pinion.

In the Romanesque of Campoo and Valderredible you can see belfries of all kinds. In other places, some are spectacular, such as that of Agullana in Alto Ampurdán or that of Astudillo, with five openings, and others are more modest, such as that of the Monastery of Santa María de Valbuena, where its openings also have a very special placement.[24]​.

Painting as a finishing touch for buildings

In the Romanesque era, a building was not considered finished until its walls received the appropriate paint.[25]​ The walls of the most important and significant parts (apses above all) were covered on the inside with iconographic paintings, many of which have survived until the 19th century, such as those belonging to the churches of the Tahull valley.[26]​ The walls, both inside and outside, were covered with a layer of paint of a single color and The imposts, openings and columns were highlighted with the original material, although sometimes they were also painted with bright colors: greens, yellows, ochres, reds and blues. This custom of painting or plastering buildings was neither new nor exclusive to the Romanesque of the Middle Ages but rather an inheritance or continuity of the way of building in Antiquity.

Whether the material used was stone, ashlar or masonry or brick, the final finish was a painted surface. Thus, in many cases it was not possible to distinguish on the outside whether they were made of stone or brick, a fact that could only be confirmed by scraping off the plaster. The painting finish gave the buildings protection against environmental aggressions that disappeared after the century when the theories of exposing construction materials were applied.

Some of these paintings have remained in certain buildings, as a testimony of the past, both on walls and in sculptures or capitals. On the façade of San Martín de Segovia "Iglesia de San Martín (Segovia)") still in the century you could see remains of painting, witnessed and described by the Spanish historian Marqués de Lozoya. Sometimes sculpting the baskets of the capitals was too expensive and they were left completely plain so that the painter could finish them with vegetal or historical motifs. In the church of San Payo de Abeleda (Orense) vestiges of painting are preserved on some capitals, which have even been repainted throughout its history and among the ruins of the monastery of San Pedro de Arlanza, fragments of capitals with their original paint have been found that can give an idea of ​​how the rest was decorated.

The Cistercian and Premonstratensian monks also painted the walls of their churches white or a light earthy color and sometimes outlined the joints of the ashlars.

Capitals, corbels, friezes, tympanums and covers

Sculpture[27]​ as decoration of buildings was something as common as it was necessary from the full Romanesque period onwards. Architecture and sculpture formed an inseparable iconographic program. The idea of ​​the Church (an idea extended and disseminated by the Benedictines of Cluny) was to teach Christian doctrine through the sculptures and paintings of the apses and interior walls. The capitals of the columns, the tympanum (architecture)), the friezes, the corbels and the archivolts of the doorways were profusely decorated with stories from the Old and New Testaments. But these sculptures were not limited to religious descriptions, but also a series of profane themes emerged that were equally important for the man of the centuries, such as field work, the calendar (such is the case of the capitals of the cloister of Santa María la Real de Nieva, from the late Romanesque), war, customs, etc. In other buildings, real, mythological and symbolic animals were sculpted, including allegories of vices and virtues (the best example can be found in the erotic corbels of the Collegiate Church of San Pedro de Cervatos in the south of Cantabria). These decorations were not always of the historical or animal type; Geometric decoration was very important at the beginning of the Romanesque period, as was floral and plant decoration. Often the sculpted tympanum or the frieze follow an iconographic program together with the capitals of the archivolt columns.

Al coincidir la difusión del románico con la adopción universal de la liturgia del rito romano, la construcción de las iglesias cambió también su planteamiento. El espacio eclesial necesitó de zonas diáfanas, de naves abiertas desde las cuales los creyentes pudieran seguir y ver al sacerdote que en la cabecera del ábside desarrollaba el rito de la misa o de otros oficios y rezos cristianos.

Los templos de la primera etapa del románico español son sencillos, con una única nave rematada por un ábside semicircular (sin transepto), el usado siempre en las pequeñas iglesias rurales. Pero pronto, al necesitarse mayores iglesias, se adoptó la planta basílical de tres naves, con sus tres ábsides semicirculares y un transepto delante del presbiterio "Presbiterio (arquitectura)") cortando las naves. Éste fue el proyecto seguido por los primeros templos castellanos del románico pleno: San Martín de Frómista y San Isidro de Dueñas en Palencia, San Pedro de Arlanza en Burgos y San Benito en Sahagún. Estas plantas de tres naves se emplearon con generalidad en catedrales y colegiatas y en las iglesias de los monasterios más importantes. Aun así, durante todo el siglo se siguió realizando en algunas zonas (como en la ciudad de Zamora) el tipo de templo de tradición hispana de tres ábsides rectos y escalonados.

Las plantas de las iglesias se iban adaptando a las necesidades litúrgicas según iba aumentando el número de canónigos o de frailes[Nota 1]​ que requerían más altares para sus funciones religiosas; así fueron edificándose iglesias con absidiolos añadidos, al estilo benedictino de Cluny. La fórmula de los largos transeptos donde podían disponerse más ábsides fue adoptada en tiempos de la arquitectura cisterciense que es donde más ejemplos pueden darse de este tipo de construcción. Este recurso fue adoptado también en las grandes catedrales (Tarragona, Lérida, Orense y Sigüenza), incluso con girolas a donde se abrian una serie de absidiolos-capilla.

Las plantas cruciformes fueron más raras, de cruz latina, aunque se pueden citar los ejemplos de la iglesia de Santa María "Iglesia de Santa María (Santa Marta de Tera)") en Santa Marta de Tera (provincia de Zamora), del siglo , y San Lorenzo de Zorita del Páramo (provincia de Palencia), cuya cabecera en este caso no es cuadrada sino semicircular. Como ejemplo de planta central, que se suelen asociar a modelos de Tierra Santa traídos por las órdenes militares, sobre todo por los caballeros templarios, están las iglesias de la Veracruz en Segovia "Iglesia de la Vera Cruz (Segovia)") y de Santa María de Eunate en Navarra[28]​ y la iglesia de San Marcos "Iglesia de San Marcos (Salamanca)") de Salamanca.

• - Plantas de iglesias románicas.

• - Santa María de Ripoll (880-1032).

• - San Martín de Frómista (1066-c.1100).

• - Monasterio de San Juan de las Abadesas (s. ).

• - Vera Cruz de Segovia "Iglesia de la Vera Cruz (Segovia)") (?-1208).

• - Santa María la Mayor de Toro "Colegiata de Santa María la Mayor (Toro)") (1170-mediados del s. ).

Sacristy

Sacristies did not exist in small churches or parish churches in the Romanesque era. In these churches, additions were made starting in the 19th century. But in those of the large monasteries or cathedrals, a space was adapted in the cloister, in the east wing, with an access door to the head.

Crypts

The crypts are one of the characteristic elements of the Romanesque. In the early Romanesque, its use spread due to the influence of the Franks. They were spaces built under the head of the church and intended to store the relics of the martyrs whose cult came from Carolingian influence. They usually have three naves with a groin vault roof, although there are more special examples, such as the circular crypt with a pillar in the center (Cuixá and San Pedro de Roda). Throughout the century they lost importance as recipients of relics and began to be built as something practical and necessary from the point of view of architecture, thus adapting the land on which the church would be built (such is the function of the crypt of the Leyre monastery). Throughout the century, few crypts were built and those that were built were always for reasons of uneven ground. Later some of them were given a funerary purpose.

• - Romanesque crypts.

• - Romanesque paintings from the main chapel of the crypt of Santa Maria del Perdón.

• - Crypt of the church of the Leyre monastery.

Grandstands

The tribunes were galleries on the side naves that were used for important people to follow the liturgy. They were hardly important in the Romanesque of Spain, their construction being very scarce. Two examples are known: San Vicente de Ávila and San Isidoro de León. Traditional historiography has assumed that this last church was a special space for Queen Sancha, wife of Ferdinand I, but more recent studies show that the dates do not agree. There is little news about this architectural addition.[29]​.

Triforiums

A clerestory is a gallery with arches that runs along the upper part of the smaller naves of a church, below the large windows of the main nave. Sometimes it also surrounds the apse at the same height. Its origin was purely aesthetic, since if the main nave was too high there would be a heavy space between the windows and the supporting arches of the lower side naves.

At first the clerestory arch was not made open, but later it was thought that it could serve to provide light and ventilation, while leaving a passage for services and surveillance of the building. This construction could be done because the side naves always extend into the central one, thus leaving a usable space of the same depth as the width of said side nave. This element had its true development in the Gothic era. In Spanish Romanesque architecture, triforiums are rare because instead the wall is usually left bare or a blind archway is built.

A good example of a triforium is that of the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. The side naves of this temple have two floors and the clerestory occupies the entire second, running through the entire building and facing the outside through a series of windows that provide light and the inside through semicircular arches. Another example occurs in the cathedral of Lugo, although in this case it does not cover all the walls. In San Vicente de Ávila the triforium is a dark gallery that does not fulfill the mission of providing light from the outside.

In some pilgrimage churches, the triforium was sometimes used as an overnight lodging area for pilgrims.[30]​.

• - Side elevation of the central nave of San Isidoro "Basilica de San Isidoro (León)") in León, with a solution prior to the clerestory: transverse arches and barrel vault.

• - Triforium of the Lugo cathedral.

Porticos and arcaded galleries

The portico is a space originally designed to prevent inclement weather. It was built in both rural and city churches, in front of the main door to protect it. In most cases they were made with a wooden structure that did not withstand the passage of time,[31]​ but in many cases the construction was in stone, giving rise to highly developed galleries that in some cases were true works of art.

The porticos were a reminder of the narthex of the Latin basilicas. They formed an advanced body on the central part of the main façade and if this façade had towers, then it occupied the space between them, as in the Portico of Glory in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, a jewel of Romanesque art. Other times it occupied the entire length of the façade, forming a covered space that was called "Galilea "Galilee (architecture)")" when it was dedicated to burial "without an altarpiece or altar, nor the appearance of a chapel", especially for "heroes or kings". When the tombs of the kings were added, it became a pantheon and was closed.

These porticos evolved into the typical arcaded galleries of the Segovian Romanesque. The exterior galleries are typical Spanish Romanesque constructions that do not appear in other countries. They can be confused with porticos and in fact this is what happens in common terminology, but they differ quite a bit in terms of construction, purpose and geographical location. They are found in a wide area of ​​Castilla; not only in the province of Segovia (the churches of San Martín "Iglesia de San Martín (Segovia)") and San Millán "Iglesia de San Millán (Segovia)") in the capital itself, church of the Asunción in Duratón "Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (Duratón)")) or in bordering areas (Jaramillo de la Fuente in the Sierra de la Demanda), but throughout Extremadura Castilian. In the province of Soria the first examples were found: San Esteban de Gormaz, San Pedro Apóstol church in Bocigas de Perales,[33]​ San Martín in Aguilera,[34]​ hermitage of Santa María de Tiermes in Montejo de Tiermes,[35]​ etc. It was traditional to build seven openings or arches, giving rise to a certain speculation about the symbolic meaning of the number seven in the Holy Scriptures.

They are arranged on a fairly high podium with simple or paired columns; They have a roof that is usually quite decorated and is covered with wood; They run along one or both of the side façades of the church, and sometimes also the main one. Their origin and primitive use are unknown, but over the years liturgical acts and even processions took place in them. After some time, the local people used the space of these galleries (which were protected and sheltered) for other purposes, such as meetings and neighborhood meetings and a burial area for the most powerful or influential. The custom of the most privileged being buried in this space began to be lost at the end of the century, when burials began to be carried out inside churches.

With the full Romanesque, the large sculptural doorway was introduced, topped by a tympanum also sculpted. The façade covers the entire thickness of the wall using archivolts so that it does not result in the shape of a tunnel; They are called flared arches. The arches of the archivolts become larger from inside to outside. Each archivolt rests directly on the capitals of the columns (which are also richly decorated) or on an impost that runs along the surface of each capital. The iconographic decoration is very abundant and usually forms a historical unit with the tympanum. Sometimes there is no tympanum but a large frieze, such as that of San Juan Bautista "Church of San Juan Bautista (Moarves de Ojeda)") in Moarves de Ojeda (Palencia). One of the characteristics (although with many exceptions) is that the façade is placed in a body that protrudes slightly from the façade, which is finished with a tile on corbels or corbels (west façade of San Pedro de Tejada in the province of Burgos; San Martín de Artaiz in Navarra, west façade).

The façades were built independently of the rest of the building and were often executed by teams of professional nomadic stonemasons, who arrived to carry out their work and left for other places where they were required. That is why many times the covers differ in time and style with the bulk of the factory, even the two or three doors of the same building can be of different make.

Location and number of doors: There is no general rule for the number of doors and their location. Sometimes there are up to three, located on the facades at the foot, north and south, coinciding with the ends of the transept (Zamora Cathedral, Ciudad Rodrigo Cathedral, etc.).

The main doorway is usually at the foot and is usually the access to the temple, but in many cases it is located in the south nave (San Pedro de Moarves, in Palencia). Sometimes the circumstances of the construction mean that the building lacks a doorway at the foot, as is the case of the church of San Miguel (Estella) "Iglesia de San Miguel (Estella)") which only has side doors because the west façade overlooks a steep terrain.

Decoration: There is a whole scale of decoration in the Spanish Romanesque doorways, from the simplest, in which only simple moldings are seen on the archivolts and smooth columns, or moldings with geometric and vegetal decoration (very abundant in the Romanesque of Soria); to the richest ones with exuberant iconography, such as that of the Portico of Glory in Santiago or that of the Portico of the Majesty in the Collegiate Church of Toro, where large, polychrome statues are seen in front of the columns.

The tympanum are presented without decoration or sculpted. Many of those that do not show decoration were originally painted, such as on the side doors of the Tarragona Cathedral or the humble tympanum of Santa María de Valdediós "Church of Santa María (Valdediós)") in Asturias. Examples of tympanums with sculpture are that of San Justo de Segovia, San Miguel de Estella "Church of San Miguel (Estella)"), San Isidoro de León, etc. A notable tympanum is that of the western portal of the basilica of San Vicente "Basilica de San Vicente (Ávila)") in Ávila, under five archivolts it is divided into two parts, with representations of scenes from the life of Lazarus. The mullion is occupied by the figure of Christ, with ten apostles standing on the sides, arranged in pairs in an attitude of conversation, except for those on the interior jambs, who face the mullion. This cover is compared to the Portico of Glory due to its many similarities.

Rosettes

The rose windows are circular windows made of stone, whose origin is in the oculus of the Latin basilicas. In Spain these rosettes were used since the 19th century. Throughout the Romanesque period the rose windows acquired importance and increased in size until they culminated in the Gothic period, a period in which the most beautiful and spectacular examples were found.

• - Romanesque rose windows.

• - Church of San Martín (Noya) "Church of San Martín (Noya)").

• - Valdedios Monastery.

• - Church of San Pedro (Ávila) "Church of San Pedro (Ávila)").

• - Church of Santo Domingo "Iglesia de Santo Domingo (Soria)") of Soria.

Pavement

In most buildings, a type of cement in the style of opus signinum, or a composition of stone and brick, was used. Archaeological studies have found few traces of original pavements. One of the most interesting remains is the mosaic that is still preserved from the transept of the church of the Ripoll monastery, signed by the artist Arnaldvs.[36]​ On many occasions the builders followed the Roman mosaic tradition. Another remains was found in the church of San Miguel in Barceloneta. Colored tiles were also used, such as those found in the apse of the Tarragona Cathedral, forming geometric drawings, in opus sectile in which interlacing dominates, with the colors standing out, orange, yellow, white and black.

The flooring of the Mudejar tradition combined tiles with bricks and was very common in the few Romanesque churches in Andalusia.

The cloister is an architectural element always built next to the cathedral churches and monastic churches, facing their north or south side. The cloister par excellence is the one spread by the Benedictine monks. The different rooms of the cloister, articulated on the four sides of a quadrangular patio, were dedicated to serving the life of the community. A large number of cloisters are preserved in the Spanish Romanesque, especially in the Catalan region.

• - Romanesque cloisters.

• - Cloister of the monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos.

• - Cloister of the Co-Cathedral of San Pedro de Soria.

• - Cloister of the Collegiate Church of Santillana del Mar.

• - Cloister of the monastery of Santa María de Valbuena (Valladolid).

• - Monastery of San Cugat del Vallés.

La arquitectura civil románica es casi desconocida y la mayoría de los edificios que se consideran de esta época, no lo son; aunque algunos conserven parte de los cimientos o alguna puerta o ventana de medio punto de época románica, su desarrollo y diseño arquitectónico pertenecen a tiempos más modernos.

Civil buildings

Domestic buildings, including palaces, were unpretentious; The houses were built with flimsy materials (in contrast to the grandeur of the churches), which were not able to withstand the passage of time. When they wanted to give importance to this civil architecture, what little there was was transformed and the new was built with Gothic trends. This is what happened with the so-called Romanesque palace of Diego Gelmírez, in Santiago de Compostela, which is actually a completely Gothic factory, or with the famous canonries of Segovia, whose structure already belongs to the Late Middle Ages.

In the city of León is the well-known palace of Doña Berenguela"), called romanesque palace, whose structure and planning actually correspond to the last years of the Late Middle Ages, far from the Romanesque, but which preserves (perhaps outside the original place) some Romanesque style windows. Likewise, in the Segovian city of Cuéllar there is the so-called palace of Pedro I "Palacio de Pedro I el Cruel (Cuéllar)") whose origin is supposed to date from the time of the Repopulation and perhaps even part of its foundations are Romanesque, but the current building is from the beginning of the century, even though it has a Romanesque façade that can be inherited from the previous building or reused from another. This palace is nevertheless considered one of the few examples of civil Romanesque. actually structures that correspond to the Gothic period.

As an example of what could have been a Romanesque palace built in stone, the testimony of the façade of the palace of the Kings of Navarra "Palacio de los Reyes de Navarra (Estella)") in Estella (Navarra) is preserved.

Bridges

Bridges were also built at this time. Just as happened with the castles, the bridges underwent subsequent changes and restorations so their current appearance does not correspond in most cases to that time. Along the entire Camino de Santiago there was a need to repair old bridges or build new ones to facilitate the passage of pilgrims. The best example of a Romanesque bridge that has reached the century almost intact is precisely on that path: it is Puente la Reina in Navarra, spanning the Arga River. It is a Romanesque work of the century. Also on the Camino de Santiago there are two other Romanesque bridges without changes, one in the Navarra town of Trinidad de Arre") over the Ulzama River and another, the Arrobi Bridge in Iroz, over the Urrobi River also in Navarra.[39]​ In Sangüesa, the eyes and extreme supports of the bridge are Romanesque in design.

Another Romanesque and pilgrim bridge was the one built in Ponferrada (León), called the Iron Bridge because of the railing that was made of this material. It was designed and built based on the needs of travelers to Santiago de Compostela who in this place had difficulties crossing the Sil River.

In Toledo there are two bridges over the Tagus River, the one in San Martín "Puente de San Martín (Toledo)") dates back to 1203, remodeled at the end of the 19th century, and the one in Alcántara "Puente de Alcántara (Toledo)") was a Muslim bridge, rebuilt in the 19th century. Valladolid had its first bridge over the Pisuerga River in the time of the lord of the town, Count Ansúrez, around the year 1080, the so-called Major Bridge. Originally it had semicircular arches that were later replaced by pointed arches. What is seen in the century of this bridge is far from the primitive Romanesque work.

• - Romanesque bridges.

• - Bridge in Trinidad de Arre") over the Ulzama River.

• - Arrobi Bridge.

• - Bujaruelo Bridge over the Ara River "Río Ara (Huesca)"), in the province of Huesca.

• - Besalú Bridge, angular in shape with seven unequal arches supported by pilasters on the living rock, with cutwaters. Originally Romanesque before 1071, it has been rebuilt many times.

military buildings

Almost the same thing happened in military architecture: castles, forts, towers and walls were completely restructured, adapting to new weapons and different ways of fighting. The medieval castles of the Romanesque period were built, some on previous buildings and others on new floors, but they all changed in the Gothic era and later. However, in Spain there remains one complete example of a Romanesque castle: the Loarre castle in Huesca, built in the 19th century, an authentic representation of what castles from the Romanesque period were.

Romanesque vestiges of the Calatrava la Nueva castle are preserved, a large fortress (46,000 square meters), built by the Calatrava knights between the years 1213 and 1217, after the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa. The documents kept in the archives detail the entire building and the layout of the rooms. In reality, it is a complex complex made up of a church, convent, inn, village and external perimeter, all heavily fortified. It was modified over the years, although you can still see the Cistercian door of the church, three large naves covered with brick vaults and three apses with pointed arches, and some Romanesque vaults in other areas. All the rooms have been destroyed and only the Romanesque foundations of the construction remain, some underground pieces and the spaces where the fortification described in the aforementioned documents was.

Also in the fortress of Segovia there are remains of Romanesque construction, in the rectangular hall of the Ajimeces whose floor plan is original from the century and which preserves remains of the Romanesque doorway and Romanesque openings with mullioned windows.

As for the walls, they had an important boost in the last years of the century to surround the new cities, even when walls and fences already existed in other points, built in remote times. The new Romanesque walls, in addition to defending, had the mission of delimiting a territory and distinguishing it from the surroundings, something very important at the time, given that belonging to an urban community brought with it special rights and obligations. The defensive walls evolved into fiscal walls or fences. The Romanesque wall par excellence is the wall of Ávila, which is preserved almost intact and very little adulterated.

The rock hermitages excavated in the rock date back to the beginning of the Early Middle Ages in Spain; Some of these Christian constructions evolved, expanded and changed their appearance with contributions from new art trends. The Romanesque made itself felt in buildings that had gone from being a hidden and secluded place of prayer to a small church with religious worship and liturgy for the people.

In the geographical environment of the north of Palencia bordering the south of Cantabria and the northwest of Burgos, an exceptional group of these rock churches is located in which you can see Romanesque elements (arches, columns, capitals). As examples can be given:

• - Cave Church of Saints Justo and Pastor of Olleros de Pisuerga.[40]​.

• - Cave church of Santa María de Valverde "Santa María de Valverde (Valderredible)") (its belfry) in the municipality of Valderredible (Cantabria).[41]​.

• - Hermitage of San Pelayo de Villacibio.

• - Church of San Miguel de Presillas (Burgos).

The science of archeology helps to understand the Romanesque era and its great constructions erected in a particular environment and under special political, economic and ideological circumstances. With regard to architecture, archaeologists can provide data not only from excavations[42]​ but also from the view of monuments that are standing, thanks to the study of what is called reading of walls.[43]​ In this field, archaeologists distinguish between construction stage (phases of execution or destruction of the work) and constructive element, which are the pieces studied individually and in the different stages, although they do not correspond to the time of the rest of the work; You can find a segment of impost, an inscription on the ashlar of a wall, a corbel, all of Romanesque execution in a Gothic work.

The study of the walls is very important for archeology that dedicates its efforts to this era. Its careful observation allows us to see, among other things, the well-known stonemason's marks that have sparked so many discussions and theories.[44]​ The marks are geometric incisions made in the ashlars of the walls, whose meaning is yet to be discovered but which can provide interesting data about geography, time of execution, stonemasons, etc.

There are also stone carving marks. Their study has revealed the technical resources used and the specific tools used in certain stone blocks. In the Romanesque they used a type of ax to grind and settle the ashlars, very typical of the time and whose use came at the same time as this style. It was a double tool, very similar to the alcotana; On one side it had a pickaxe and on the other a kind of axe. The edge of the ax left characteristic marks on the stone that over time have come to demonstrate which tool was used. These traces help to identify a Romanesque work, especially if it is a wall lacking other identifying elements. This tool can be seen represented quite often in historiated capitals or corbels.

With the Gothic came a technical change and the preferred tool was the carving knife, very similar to the previous one but with the serrated ax part, which also leaves special and recognizable traces.

The first transitional steps were taken in the architecture of Cistercian works with the use of the pointed arch (not yet too pointed), which would be one of the most evident characteristics of the Gothic. The evolution of the Romanesque gave rise to the new style, especially in architectural structures, since from the point of view of aesthetics the Gothic demonstrated a very different taste. After the trials, adventures and great studies of the Romanesque builders, the new style was able to triumph, whose most important representation is the great cathedrals. Since the end of the 20th century, the transition has been identified in the cathedral of Tarragona and in the cathedral of Lérida "Catedral de la Seo Vieja (Lérida)").[45]​.

• - Romanesque architecture in France.

• - Romanesque architecture in Italy.

• - Romanesque art in Castilla y León.

• - Romanesque art in Palencia.

• - Romanesque art of Catalonia.

• - Mudejar art.

• - Mayor Crespo, Gonzalo. Rock churches. Olleros de Pisuerga and others in its surroundings. Edilesa, 2007. ISBN 84-8012-618-2.

• - Bango Torviso, Isidro G.. Treasures of Spain. Vol. III. Romanesque. Espasa Calpe, 2000. ISBN 84-239-6674-7.

• - Bango Torviso, Isidro G. History of the Art of Castilla y León. Volume II. Romanesque Art. Ámbito Ediciones, Valladolid 1994. ISBN 84-8183-002-X.

• - Chamorro Lamas, Manuel. Romanesque routes in Galicia. Ediciones Encuentro, Madrid 1996. ISBN 84-7490-411-0.

• - García Guinea, Miguel Ángel. Romanesque in Palencia. Provincial Council of Palencia, 2002 (2nd revised edition). ISBN 84-8173-091-2.

• - García Guinea, Miguel Ángel and Blanco Martín, Francisco Javier. Initiation to Romanesque Art. Romanesque architecture: techniques and principles. Foundation of Santa María la Real. Aguilar de Campoo, 2000. ISBN 84-89483-13-2.

• - García Guinea, Miguel Ángel. Romanesque in Cantabria. Study Guides, Santander 1996. ISBN 84-87934-49-8.

• - Herrera Marcos, Jesús, Romanesque architecture and symbolism in Valladolid. Edited by Ars Magna, 1997. Provincial Council of Valladolid. ISBN 84-923230-0-0.

• - Lampérez y Romea, Vicente. History of Spanish Christian architecture in the Middle Ages. Volume I. Editorial Ámbito, 1999. ISBN 84-7846-906-0.

• - Lampérez y Romea, Vicente. History of Christian architecture. Gallach Manuals. Espasa Calpe Editorial, Madrid 1935.

• - Nuño González, Jaime. Initiation to Romanesque Art: Contribution of History, Archeology and auxiliary sciences to the knowledge of the Romanesque style. Aguilar de Campoo, 2000. ISBN 84-89483-13-2.

• - Pijoán, José. Summa Artis. General history of art. Vol. IX. Romanesque art 11th and 12th centuries. Espasa Calpe, Madrid 1949.

• - Wikimedia Commons hosts a multimedia category on Romanesque Architecture in Spain.

• - Interactive map of the Spanish Romanesque.

• - Portal about the Romanesque.

The French archaeologist Charles de Gerville first coined the term Romanesque (in French: roman) to refer to the stage of the Middle Ages that spanned from the decline of the Roman Empire to the century ; The term already existed related to languages ​​derived from Latin (Romance or Romance languages) and he used it in a letter addressed in 1818 to his friend Arcisse de Caumont, another French archaeologist who was the one who disseminated it in his Essai sur l'architecture du moyen âge, particulièrement en Normandie (Essay on medieval architecture, particularly in Normandy), dated 1824.

At the dawn of the century, art historiography restricted the chronology, placing the Romanesque period from the end of the century to the introduction of Gothic. Since the term Romanesque was coined as a stylistic concept without nuances, historians sought a greater and more descriptive definition, subdividing this generalized concept into three well-defined stages: First Romanesque, Full Romanesque and Late Romanesque.

Contenido

El románico corresponde a una época en que la cristiandad se encontraba más segura y optimista. Europa había asumido en los siglos anteriores la decadencia del esplendor carolingio soportando al mismo tiempo los ataques normandos y húngaros (los magiares llegaron hasta Borgoña) que destruyeron bastantes de sus monasterios. En España habían sido nefastas las campañas de Almanzor, arrasando y destruyendo también gran parte de monasterios y pequeñas iglesias. A finales del siglo en Europa una serie de hechos estabilizadores dieron ocasión para que reinara el equilibrio y la tranquilidad, serenándose en gran medida la situación política y la vida de la cristiandad. Las principales fuerzas surgieron con los Otones y el Sacro Imperio junto con la figura del Papa cuyo poder se hace universal y ostenta la facultad de coronar en Roma a los emperadores. En España, los reyes cristianos llevaban su Reconquista bastante avanzada y firmaban pactos y pautas de convivencia con los reyes musulmanes. En este contexto surgió en toda la cristiandad el espíritu de organización de los monjes que tuvieron en Cluny un ejemplo a seguir. Los monasterios e iglesias que se construyeron a partir de estos años acondicionaron su arquitectura a una mayor duración en el tiempo frente a posibles ataques, tanto de enemigos, como de incendios y causas naturales. En toda Europa se extendió el uso de la bóveda frente al cubrimiento con madera. Se restablecieron las comunicaciones y el acercamiento entre distintos monarcas europeos así como las relaciones con Bizancio.

El legado romano de caminos y calzadas sirvió para mayor comunicación entre los numerosos monasterios surgidos y lo mismo ocurrió para las peregrinaciones a los Santos Lugares o a pequeños enclaves de gran devoción popular. Debido a las mismas circunstancias, el mundo del comercio se vio incrementado y todo este trasiego de gente llevó y difundió los nuevos estilos de vida entre los que se encontraba la renovadora forma del estilo románico. Los santuarios, catedrales, etc. se construyeron en estilo románico a lo largo de cerca de dos siglos y medio.

Background and historical context in Spain

In Spain[7]​ Romanesque art entered through Catalonia, through the lands of the Hispanic March. The Christian kingdoms and counties of the northern half of the peninsula had remained faithful over the centuries to the traditional Hispano-Roman and Visigothic heritage, which in architecture had evolved into its own and ephemeral art that lasted until the arrival of the Romanesque in the 2nd century. Art historiography has traditionally given the name pre-Romanesque to these constructions, but more modern historians were able to see in these buildings their own style that could not be considered a precursor to the Romanesque. These are Asturian Art[8]​ and Mozarabic Art or, according to the most modern historiography, repopulation art.

Asturian art developed over the centuries and in the times of the Asturian kings with Hispano-Roman and Gothic solutions and Carolingian and Byzantine contributions.[9]​.

In the century and under the reign of Alfonso II, the warlike situation of the first Muslim pushes subsided and with the help of the progressive establishment of monasteries, repopulation began from the north towards the Plateau (this repopulation expanded in the century), and from the south by the Mozarabs towards the Plateau and further north, including the Catalan lands. This repopulation will reach its zenith during the reigns of Alfonso VI and Alfonso VII. Most of these repopulation monasteries were transformed with the arrival of the Romanesque. In many of them only a few Mozarabic vestiges remained and in others the entire factory remained, such as in San Miguel de Escalada.

The alarming turn of the millennium with fears of great disasters and an apocalyptic end to the world manifested itself in Spain in the form of terrible clashes, first with the Norman incursions into Galician lands, where several cities were razed and looted, and then with the attacks and raids of the dangerous Almanzor, which in its wake looted and burned a considerable number of towns in the Christian kingdoms and counties. After these years of great instability, the Christian kings and counts were able to think again about the advance of the Reconquista and repopulation. The pilgrimages of the Camino de Santiago protected by the kingdoms of Navarra and especially Aragon were resumed, which gave rise to the establishment of Romanesque Christian architecture, which left its presence throughout the century. Later, the great relationship and friendship of Alfonso VI with the monks of Cluny, the marriage of his daughters with Burgundian princes and the policy of this king open to European renovations, resulted in the consolidation of Romanesque as an art to follow not only on the Camino de Santiago but in the rest of the lands governed by this king.

In Catalonia, the true promoter of the Romanesque was Abbot Oliba, who in 1008 was abbot of the monasteries of Ripoll and San Miguel de Cuixá. He traveled to Rome on several occasions and it must have been through Italian lands where he learned about the construction work of the Lombard stonemasons, whom he introduced to his Catalan land, where the group or groups of stonemasons began to build or rebuild countless churches in the Romanesque style but with Lombard characteristics and ornamentation.[10] In addition to Lombard techniques, the initial Catalan architecture was mixed with indigenous, Visigothic and Mozarabic traditions. A good example can be shown in San Pedro de Roda, consecrated in 1022.

This first Lombard Romanesque also spread throughout Aragonese lands whose small rural churches were influenced at the same time by Hispanic traditions.

En la Edad Media el concepto de la palabra arquitecto tal y como se concebía entre los romanos se perdió totalmente dando paso a un cambio de nivel social. La tarea del antiguo arquitecto vino a recaer sobre el maestro constructor, un artista que en la mayoría de los casos tomaba parte en la propia construcción junto con la cuadrilla de obreros que tenía a sus órdenes. El maestro constructor era quien supervisaba el edificio (como lo hacía el antiguo arquitecto) pero al mismo tiempo podía ser un artesano, un escultor, carpintero o cantero.[11]​ Este personaje se educaba por lo general en monasterios o en grupos de logias masónicas gremiales. Muchos de estos maestros constructores fueron los autores de bellísimas portadas o pórticos, como el de la catedral de Santiago de Compostela hecho por el maestro Mateo o el pórtico de Nogal de las Huertas en Palencia, del maestro Jimeno"), o la portada norte de la iglesia de San Salvador "Iglesia de San Salvador (Ejea de los Caballeros)") de Ejea de los Caballeros (provincia de Zaragoza) del maestro de Agüero.

Toda obra arquitectónica románica se componía de su director (maestro constructor), un maestro de obras[12]​ al frente de un grupo numeroso formando cuadrillas de picapedreros, canteros, escultores, vidrieros, carpinteros, pintores y otros muchos oficios o especialidades, que se trasladaban de un lugar a otro. Estas cuadrillas formaban talleres de los que a veces salían maestros locales que eran capaces de levantar iglesias rurales. En este conjunto no hay que olvidar al personaje más importante, el mecenas o promotor, sin el cual la obra nunca se habría llevado a cabo.

Por los documentos que se han conservado en España sobre contratos de obras, litigios y otros temas, se sabe que en las catedrales se destinaba una casa o alojamiento para vivienda del maestro y su familia. Existen documentos de litigios en que se habla del problema de la viuda de algún maestro donde reclama para sí y los suyos dicha casa a perpetuidad. Este hecho llegó en algún caso a suponer un verdadero conflicto, pues era necesario que el maestro heredero de la obra ocupase la vivienda.

En algunos casos los maestros constructores tenían que comprometerse con la obra de por vida, si ésta era de larga duración, como fue el caso del maestro Mateo con la construcción de la catedral de Santiago, o el maestro Ramon Llambard (o Raimundo Lambardo) con la catedral de Santa María de Urgel. Existía una norma exigida en los contratos que los maestros debían cumplir siempre: su presencia diaria a pie de obra y el estricto control de los trabajadores y de la marcha del edificio. Para la preparación de materiales y labra de la piedra se edificaba siempre una casa de obra. Muchos documentos[13]​ del siglo hablan de esta casa:.

The stonemasons

They formed the bulk of workers in the erection of the building. The number of stonemasons could vary according to the local economy. Some of these figures are known, such as that of the Old Cathedral of Salamanca, where between 25 and 30 worked. Aymeric Picaud in his Codex Calixtinus provides the information:.

These stonemasons and the rest of the workers were exempt from paying taxes. According to their specialization, they were distinguished into two groups: those who were dedicated to a special work of high quality (true sculptor artists) and who went at their own pace, leaving their finished work in place and waiting to be placed in the building and those who were permanent workers, who raised the buildings stone by stone and placed in due time those quality pieces or reliefs carved by the first group.

This way of working could give rise to a chronological gap in the pieces placed over time, a gap that in many cases has become a big problem for historians when dating a building.

There was also a group of unskilled workers who worked on whatever they were told. In many cases these people offered their work or service as an act of piety because as Christians they were aware that they were collaborating in a great work dedicated to their God. In any case, they received remuneration that could be by day or by piece.") In the documents, many names appear in lists of wages that were not arbitrary but were well regulated.

Among the Cistercians they were known as ponteadores gangs,[14]​ composed of laymen or monks who moved from one region to another, always under the direction of a professional monk, whose work consisted of leveling land, opening roads, or building bridges.

Anonymity and signature of the artists

Most Romanesque works are anonymous in the sense of lacking a signature or document that proves authorship. Even if the work is signed, specialist historians sometimes have difficulty distinguishing whether reference is made to the true author or the promoter of the work. Other times, however, the signature is followed or preceded by an explanation that clarifies whether it is one character or another. Arnau Cadell made it very clear in a capital of Sant Cugat: This is the image of the sculptor Arnau Cadell who built this cloister for posterity.

The same as Rodrigo Gustioz wanted to immortalize himself for his financing of an arch in Santa María de Lebanza: This arch was made by Rodrigo Gustioz, a man from Valbuena, a soldier, pray for him.

And in a capital appears the news of another promoter:.

In other cases it is the systematic study of sculpture together with architecture that makes historians draw conclusions. Thus, it is known that in the cathedral of Lérida "Catedral de la Seo Vieja (Lérida)") Pere de Coma worked as master builder from 1190 to 1220, but during that period the presence of several well-differentiated sculpture workshops is detected. The same study carried out in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela suggests that Maestro Mateo was the director of the factory and director of successive workshops that present a stylistic evolution carried out by different hands but under the same coherent direction.[15]​.

The fact that most of the Romanesque works have remained anonymous has led to the development of the theory that the artist considered that he was not an appropriate person to capture his name in the works dedicated to God. But, on the one hand, the few civil works that are preserved do not appear signed either and on the other, such an opinion is counteracted by a long list that could be given of artists who do sign their works, among which the following stand out:

• - Raimundo de Monforte, who appears in documentation from 1129 contracted to build the cathedral of Lugo.

• - Pedro Deustamben, who appears in a funerary epigraph of San Isidoro de León as the builder of the vaults.

• - Raimundo Lambard or Lambardo, who worked since 1175 in the cathedral of Urgel.

• - The masters Bernard the Elder, Roberto and Esteban who intervened in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

• - Master Pere de Coma, who worked at the end of the century on the cathedral of Lérida "Catedral de la Seo Vieja (Lérida)").

• - Master Micaelis"), who worked in several churches and hermitages in the north of Palencia, and left his portrait working in the church of San Cornelio and San Cipriano in Revilla de Santullán.

The list could be continued with many more names that appeared either on the stone itself as a signature, or in contracting documents, as a demonstration that making themselves known was neither prohibited nor discouraged.[16] What is difficult to distinguish in many cases is the range of their trade since sometimes they could be architects, specialized stonemasons or sculptors of certain pieces. All of them used to be called and they all developed their craft thanks to the desire and mandate of the promoters and patrons.

Promoters and patrons

In the world of the Romanesque, both the promoter of the works, the patron and the financier are the true protagonists of the architectural work or the professional of carrying it out with mathematical rigor) and they are the ones who stimulate and enhance the projects. The promoters were also responsible for hiring and calling the best artists and architects who worked thanks to their drive and enthusiasm. Especially in sculpture and painting, the artist was totally subject to the will of the powerful patrons and promoters, without whose intervention the work would never have been carried out. The Romanesque artist adapted to the will of these characters, giving the work the best of his craft and settling for the satisfaction of a job well done without having any desire or suspicion of being able to acquire world fame as it began to develop from the Renaissance. The pride of a job well done and the recognition of their colleagues and patrons was the greatest reward and that is why sometimes this pride led them to express it in a very simple way in one of their finished works.

In Spain, the kings and a minority of the nobility early implemented the new Romanesque trends (which brought with them a Benedictine renewal and an acceptance of the Roman liturgy), while another part of the nobility and the majority of bishops and monks remained clinging to the old customs and the Hispanic liturgy. However, the Romanesque triumphed completely and this was mainly due to the patrons and promoters who carried out great works from which the new style was developed throughout the northern half of the Iberian Peninsula.

Abbot Oliba: This character was a patron, promoter and great promoter of Romanesque art in Catalonia from a very early date. In the year 1008 he was appointed abbot of the monastery of Ripoll and the monastery of Cuixá and ten years later he was appointed bishop of Vich. His trips to Rome (1011 and 1016) and his contacts with Frankish monasticism led to his knowledge of the Roman liturgy and its introduction into the Catalan Church. The Benedictine reform of Cluny had greatly influenced Cuixá with whom Oliba maintained close relations. Oliba therefore adopted Cluny's standards, both in architecture and in customs, and under his patronage and direction the major renovations, new buildings or in other cases simple extensions were carried out to adapt to the needs of the new times. Abbot Oliba tried to be present in all these firsts: at consecrations, meetings in which matters concerning a construction were discussed, etc. Oliba, in a period between 1030 and 1040,[17]​ was the promoter of such important buildings as:.

• - Church of San Vicente de Cardona, completely redesigned.

• - Monastery of Montserrat and Montbuy.

• - Monasteries of Ripoll, Cuixá, San Martín de Canigó, Vich, in whose works he intervened personally and directly.

En España no se distinguen fácilmente escuelas geográficas de arquitectura como ocurre en Francia, porque todos los tipos que pueden darse aparecen mezclados. Sin embargo pueden presentarse algunos ejemplos de edificios que siguen claramente, si no en su totalidad sí en gran parte, algunas de estas escuelas francesas:.

• - Escuela de Auvernia, con la catedral de Santiago de Compostela y la Basílica de San Vicente "Basílica de San Vicente (Ávila)") en Ávila.

• - Escuela de Poitou, con Santo Domingo de Soria "Iglesia de Santo Domingo (Soria)") y la mayoría de las iglesias catalanas del siglo , como San Pedro de Roda y San Pedro de Galligans.

• - Escuela de Perigord, cuyos ejemplares pertenecen ya a la transición hacia el gótico, como la colegiata de Toro (salvo la cúpula que es de influencia bizantina).

• - Ejemplos de las escuelas de arquitectura en España.

• - Basílica de San Vicente (Ávila) "Basílica de San Vicente (Ávila)") (escuela de Auvernia).

• - Iglesia de Santo Domingo "Iglesia de Santo Domingo (Soria)") de Soria (escuela de Poitou).

• - Nave de la iglesia del monasterio de San Pedro de Roda (escuela de Poitou).

• - Portada de la Colegiata de Toro (escuela de Perigord).

Local variants

Each kingdom, region or geographical region of the peninsula, as well as some human events (such as the Camino de Santiago), marked a characteristic style influenced by the geographical environment itself, by tradition, or simply by the teams of hired stonemasons and builders who moved from one place to another. As a consequence of this, in the Romanesque architecture of Spain we can speak of Catalan Romanesque, Aragonese Romanesque, Palencian Romanesque, Castilla y León Romanesque, etc.

Another circumstance to take into account is the survival of the Mudejars in the towns, who formed groups of workers and artists who gave a very special stamp to the buildings. It is what is known as brick Romanesque or Mudejar Romanesque.

In Spain, as in the rest of the Western Christian world, Romanesque art developed during three stages with their own characteristics. Historiography has defined these stages with the names first Romanesque, full Romanesque and late Romanesque or also called late Romanesque.

• - First Romanesque:[18]​ its architecture comprises a well-defined geographical area that runs from northern Italy, Mediterranean France, Burgundy and Catalan and Aragonese lands in Spain. It developed from the end of the century to the middle of the century, except in isolated places. In this Romanesque period there was no painting or miniature or monumental sculpture.

• - Full Romanesque: it developed from the East to Lisbon and from southern Italy to Scandinavia. It spread thanks to monastic movements, the unity of Catholic worship with the Roman liturgy and communication routes through roads. It began to take off towards the first half of the century and continued until the middle of the century following the route of the Camino de Santiago along which new trends arrived, consisting, above all, of the complication of the ornamentation of doors and the great importance of painting. The first friezes and radial figures appeared in the archivolts, the culmination of which began in 1150, and monumental sculpture was manifested in doorways and tympanums and in the decoration and carving of the capitals, moldings, imposts, etc. The buildings were built vaulted. The best examples are given in the so-called pilgrimage churches that in Spain are represented in the cathedral of Santiago and are also installed in repopulation territories.

• - Late Romanesque: chronologically it includes from the end of the full Romanesque until the first quarter of the century in which Gothic art begins to triumph and which will last in some places until the middle of the century. The architecture and construction techniques will be mixed with the Gothic until the triumph of this new art whose ornamentation will be totally different from the Romanesque. For some time Romanesque techniques (buttresses, semicircular arches, etc.) will coexist with clearly Gothic contributions.

• - Apses of the Ripoll monastery, an early example of the first Romanesque style.

• - Church of San Vicente de Cardona (1029-1040) in the walled enclosure of the Cardona castle, in Cardona (Barcelona), one of the best testimonies of the first Catalan Romanesque.

• - Nave of the church (1174-1225) of the Santes Creus monastery, an example of full Catalan Romanesque.

En lo concerniente a España, los edificios románicos religiosos no alcanzaron nunca la monumentalidad de las construcciones francesas, o de las construcciones que más tarde levantaría el arte gótico. Los primeros edificios tenían gruesos muros y pequeños vanos por los que entraba del exterior una tenue luz. Después hubo una evolución en la construcción de los muros que permitió aligerarlos y abrir ventanas más grandes.

Los edificios monásticos fueron los más numerosos compartiendo importancia con las catedrales. En las ciudades surgieron iglesias y parroquias y en las localidades pequeñas se fueron levantando un sinfín de pequeñas iglesias conocidas como románico rural.

The materials

The most precious but also the most expensive material was stone. The stonemasons were in charge of carving it with the chisel and always detecting the good side of the block; Thus they turned it into ashlars that were generally arranged in horizontal rows and other times, on edge. Hard rocks were almost always used. Masonry was also used, with carved stone in the corners, windows and doors. If the stone was difficult to obtain, because the corresponding geographic location lacked quarries, or because it was very expensive at certain times, fired brick, "Slate (rock)" slate, or any type of ashlar were used. The final finish was paint and plaster, both for the stone and for the masonry and the other materials, in such a way that, once the walls were painted, it could not be distinguished if there was one material or another underneath. Color in Romanesque architecture was widespread, the same as it had been in Roman buildings.[22]​.

The foundations

Taking into account the type of building that was going to be built, the materials that were going to be used and the terrain that would support it, medieval builders did a complete preliminary study for the foundation. First, the trenches were dug very deep and filled with stones and rubble. The ditches were distributed by virtue of the walls that would go over them and others were made transversely to join together the bays "Crujía (architecture)") and reinforce the pillars of the transverse arches. The foundations constituted an entire network that practically outlined the floor plan of the temple, thus differentiating it from the isolated foundation to support pillars used in the Gothic style. In some destroyed churches, nothing remains but this foundation, providing archaeologists with good study material. With these remains of foundations exposed to light, it is possible to know approximately the thickness of the walls, although it is known that in this sense the builders exaggerated quite a bit and made the trenches excessively deep and the foundations excessively thick for fear of collapses.

Vaults, domes and roofs

In the first Romanesque period, many of the rural churches were still covered with wooden roofs, especially in Catalonia and especially in the Boí valley, whose Romanesque renovation of old churches was carried out by Lombard builders who covered the gabled naves with a wooden structure, absolutely respecting the old traditions of this region. However, the apse was always finished in these churches with an oven vault.

Throughout the century, the "Crujía (architecture)" naves were covered with the barrel, half-barrel or quarter-barrel vault, a resource used in the Romanesque throughout Europe, and later the groin vault was used. In Catalonia these barrel vaults were used without reinforcements, while in Castilla y León the transverse arches were used as support. The use of the groin vault (originated by the perpendicular cut of two barrel vaults) had been forgotten and was taken up again by the great master builders. The groin vault in turn gave way to the ribbed vault, a very common resource in Gothic architecture.

There was also the type of vault called helical, used exclusively in the stairs of the towers. Examples are given in San Martín de Frómista, San Pedro de Galligans and San Salvador de Leyre among others.

In the cloisters of monasteries and cathedrals, corner vaults were built, which are those that resulted from the meeting of two groups of a cloister. The solutions for this type of vaults were not very easy, so the builders resorted to tricks and dissimulations that gave them a good result that was very apparent to the naked eye.

At the meeting of the main nave and the transept, the domes with a dome were raised, the center of which was pierced with a lantern "Lantern (architecture)") to give way to the outside light. The domes of Spanish Romanesque architecture achieved great importance. The construction of domes was introduced whose drum "Drum (architecture)") rested on a square with the help of the horns "Trumpet (architecture)"). The introduction of this system was due to three influences:

• - The path from the East, through communications with Byzantium and other places, of a religious, political or commercial nature.

• - The influence of the groups of Lombard builders, masters in developing the dome on squinches. A large number of these domes spread throughout the counties of Catalonia, especially in the 19th century.

• - The Aquitanian influence, where the dome is a representative element.

The variety of construction of these domes is remarkable; can be seen:

• - Octagonal dome supported on squinches (especially in Catalonia).

• - Spherical dome on tubes, with or without nerves (in Aragon).

• - Spherical dome on tubes, without nerves (in the areas of Palencia, Cantabria and Soria).

• - Spherical dome on squinches, with nerves (in the lands of Segovia).

Arches

In Spain the most used and characteristic arch "Arco (construction)") was the semicircular one, although the horseshoe arch and the pointed arch were also used. The semicircular arch was used exclusively throughout the century and first half of the 19th century. If they wanted to reach greater heights, they were made very banked, as in San Juan de las Abadesas. Many arches were built bent[23]​ with the intention that they would acquire greater resistance. Later, on the doorways, the semicircular arches were formed with archivolts, that is, a succession of concentric arches decorated with simple moldings or with vegetal or geometric ornamentation.

Pointed arches are originally from the East; The exact date of its use in the Romanesque of Spain is unknown, although historians consider some dates based on buildings that contain in some of their areas one or several pointed arches that sometimes generate an entire vault. They are buildings that correspond to the first quarter of the century, such as the cathedral of Lugo and Santa María de Terrasa. The primitive use of these arches was as a construction element that provided many advantages. It was a great architectural advance that the Cistercian monks knew how to see from the beginning.

The horseshoe arch, although typical of previous times, was also used in some Spanish Romanesque buildings. It was an arch inherited from Visigothic architecture, especially in Catalonia due to the tradition of the Visigoths of Septimania (doors of Santa María de Porqueras, transverse arches of San Pedro de Roda), and also of Islamic influence, especially in Andalusia and Extremadura. Other examples with horseshoe arches are:.

• - Church of Santa María "Iglesia de Santa María (Santa Marta de Tera)") in Santa Marta de Tera (Zamora) in the access openings to the arms of the transept.

• - Ávila Cathedral, in the arches of the old triforium.

• - Basilica of Santa Eulalia de Mérida "Basilica de Santa Eulalia (Mérida)"), access door and inside the apses.

• - Church of San Miguel de Córdoba "Iglesia de San Miguel (Córdoba)"), in a side door and in the baptistery chapel.

• - Hermitage of San Martín in San Vicente de la Sonsierra (La Rioja).

The lobed arch#Lobed_arch "Arch (construction)") is quite common. It is an artistic way of presenting the semicircular arch and later the pointed one. In Spain these arches are of clear Islamic influence, with the old Mihrab of the Córdoba mosque as the main example.

• - Romanesque arches.

• - Romanesque window, Ciudad Rodrigo.

• - Horseshoe arch at the entrance to the Basilica of Santa Eulalia in Mérida "Basilica de Santa Eulalia (Mérida)").

• - Arch in a side door of the church of San Miguel de Córdoba "Iglesia de San Miguel (Córdoba)").

• - Pointed arch of the Seo Vieja (Lérida) "Seo Vieja (Lérida)").

Buttresses

Buttresses are thick, continuous, vertical walls that are placed on the sides of an arch or vault to counteract its thrust. They are also placed on the exterior walls of the naves of churches or cloisters. In Romanesque architecture they are always visible, being one of the elements that most characterize it, especially in Spanish architecture, except in the area of ​​Catalonia where the construction was made adopting a greater thickness of the walls.

The buttress has a prismatic shape that is usually maintained at its entire height, although there are some variants such as those that imitate a fluted pilaster with a capital (San Juan de Rabanera in Soria). Sometimes it offers a simple or complicated stairway with several diminishing bodies, in the Cuenca cathedral "Cathedral of Cuenca (Spain)") or in the Fitero monastery whose buttresses of the apses have a rectangular shape at the base and its profile changes capriciously.

Many of the monuments of Galicia offer buttresses joined together by an arch, thus forming a composite wall. An example can be seen on the side façade of the Santiago de Compostela cathedral.

• - Fluted pilaster buttress with capital (San Juan de Rabanera in Soria).

• - Buttress as a column base in the collegiate church of San Pedro de Cervatos.

• - Buttresses with different sections in the apse of the monastery of Santa María la Real (Fitero) "Monasterio de Santa María la Real (Fitero)").

• - Large buttresses in the rural church of San Martín de Mondoñedo (Lugo.

• - Buttresses in the Romanesque part of the Cuenca cathedral "Cathedral of Cuenca (Spain)").

• - Buttresses joined by an arch on the façade of the Platerías of the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

Covers

The buildings were covered with a roof that could be made of different materials:.

• - Stone (very common). These covers can still be seen in the Gallo tower of the Old Cathedral of Salamanca and in the Cathedral of Ávila.

• - Tile, a material that is always renewed because it does not resist the passage of time.

• - Glazed flakes, rare material. It is located on the spire of the tower of the Antigua "Iglesia de Santa María La Antigua (Valladolid)") of Valladolid.

• - Slate "Slate (rock)"), especially in places where this material is abundant, mainly in Galicia.

The towers

In Spanish buildings the towers can be seen located at different points of the church, on the sides, on the transept and in very special cases on the straight section of the apse, as occurs in the churches of the city of Sahagún#Churches "Sahagún (Spain)") in León. This placement was due to the fact that, as they were built of brick (a less consistent material than stone), they were looking for the place of greatest resistance, which was always the location of the apses. The façade with two towers is not very common and is usually seen only in temples of great importance.

The towers serve as bell towers, especially in the Romanesque of Castilla y León; They are the so-called turres Signorum. In many cases they were erected as defense towers, especially in conflictive border territories and their location depended on what they wanted to defend, thus the tower of the church of the monastery of Silos was placed defending the monastery and the tower of the monastery of San Pedro de Arlanza had great defensive importance for the entire enclosure. The warlike aspect of these Romanesque towers evolved and changed over time so that at present one can barely guess their purpose from other times. In many cases these towers rose close to the sides of the church, and even freestanding.

• - Romanesque towers.

• - Defensive tower of the church of the monastery of San Pedro de Arlanza.

• - Defensive tower of the church of the Silos monastery.

• - Defensive tower of the Zamora cathedral.

• - Romanesque-Mudejar tower over the straight section of the central apse in the Church of San Tirso (Sahagún) "Iglesia de San Tirso (Sahagún)").

• - Tower on the straight section of the church of San Lorenzo "Iglesia de San Lorenzo (Sahagún)") in Sahagún "Sahagún (Spain)").

Cattails

A belfry "Belfry (architecture)") is an architectural element that is generally built on the façade and which serves to house the bells "Bell (instrument)"), replacing a tower. It rises as a vertical continuation of the wall and the openings that will receive the bells open in it. The cattail is easier to erect and cheaper. In the Spanish Romanesque they were very numerous, especially in smaller churches of the rural Romanesque. They can have a single span or several staggered floors. They are generally finished in a point or pinion.

In the Romanesque of Campoo and Valderredible you can see belfries of all kinds. In other places, some are spectacular, such as that of Agullana in Alto Ampurdán or that of Astudillo, with five openings, and others are more modest, such as that of the Monastery of Santa María de Valbuena, where its openings also have a very special placement.[24]​.

Painting as a finishing touch for buildings

In the Romanesque era, a building was not considered finished until its walls received the appropriate paint.[25]​ The walls of the most important and significant parts (apses above all) were covered on the inside with iconographic paintings, many of which have survived until the 19th century, such as those belonging to the churches of the Tahull valley.[26]​ The walls, both inside and outside, were covered with a layer of paint of a single color and The imposts, openings and columns were highlighted with the original material, although sometimes they were also painted with bright colors: greens, yellows, ochres, reds and blues. This custom of painting or plastering buildings was neither new nor exclusive to the Romanesque of the Middle Ages but rather an inheritance or continuity of the way of building in Antiquity.

Whether the material used was stone, ashlar or masonry or brick, the final finish was a painted surface. Thus, in many cases it was not possible to distinguish on the outside whether they were made of stone or brick, a fact that could only be confirmed by scraping off the plaster. The painting finish gave the buildings protection against environmental aggressions that disappeared after the century when the theories of exposing construction materials were applied.

Some of these paintings have remained in certain buildings, as a testimony of the past, both on walls and in sculptures or capitals. On the façade of San Martín de Segovia "Iglesia de San Martín (Segovia)") still in the century you could see remains of painting, witnessed and described by the Spanish historian Marqués de Lozoya. Sometimes sculpting the baskets of the capitals was too expensive and they were left completely plain so that the painter could finish them with vegetal or historical motifs. In the church of San Payo de Abeleda (Orense) vestiges of painting are preserved on some capitals, which have even been repainted throughout its history and among the ruins of the monastery of San Pedro de Arlanza, fragments of capitals with their original paint have been found that can give an idea of ​​how the rest was decorated.

The Cistercian and Premonstratensian monks also painted the walls of their churches white or a light earthy color and sometimes outlined the joints of the ashlars.

Capitals, corbels, friezes, tympanums and covers

Sculpture[27]​ as decoration of buildings was something as common as it was necessary from the full Romanesque period onwards. Architecture and sculpture formed an inseparable iconographic program. The idea of ​​the Church (an idea extended and disseminated by the Benedictines of Cluny) was to teach Christian doctrine through the sculptures and paintings of the apses and interior walls. The capitals of the columns, the tympanum (architecture)), the friezes, the corbels and the archivolts of the doorways were profusely decorated with stories from the Old and New Testaments. But these sculptures were not limited to religious descriptions, but also a series of profane themes emerged that were equally important for the man of the centuries, such as field work, the calendar (such is the case of the capitals of the cloister of Santa María la Real de Nieva, from the late Romanesque), war, customs, etc. In other buildings, real, mythological and symbolic animals were sculpted, including allegories of vices and virtues (the best example can be found in the erotic corbels of the Collegiate Church of San Pedro de Cervatos in the south of Cantabria). These decorations were not always of the historical or animal type; Geometric decoration was very important at the beginning of the Romanesque period, as was floral and plant decoration. Often the sculpted tympanum or the frieze follow an iconographic program together with the capitals of the archivolt columns.

Al coincidir la difusión del románico con la adopción universal de la liturgia del rito romano, la construcción de las iglesias cambió también su planteamiento. El espacio eclesial necesitó de zonas diáfanas, de naves abiertas desde las cuales los creyentes pudieran seguir y ver al sacerdote que en la cabecera del ábside desarrollaba el rito de la misa o de otros oficios y rezos cristianos.

Los templos de la primera etapa del románico español son sencillos, con una única nave rematada por un ábside semicircular (sin transepto), el usado siempre en las pequeñas iglesias rurales. Pero pronto, al necesitarse mayores iglesias, se adoptó la planta basílical de tres naves, con sus tres ábsides semicirculares y un transepto delante del presbiterio "Presbiterio (arquitectura)") cortando las naves. Éste fue el proyecto seguido por los primeros templos castellanos del románico pleno: San Martín de Frómista y San Isidro de Dueñas en Palencia, San Pedro de Arlanza en Burgos y San Benito en Sahagún. Estas plantas de tres naves se emplearon con generalidad en catedrales y colegiatas y en las iglesias de los monasterios más importantes. Aun así, durante todo el siglo se siguió realizando en algunas zonas (como en la ciudad de Zamora) el tipo de templo de tradición hispana de tres ábsides rectos y escalonados.

Las plantas de las iglesias se iban adaptando a las necesidades litúrgicas según iba aumentando el número de canónigos o de frailes[Nota 1]​ que requerían más altares para sus funciones religiosas; así fueron edificándose iglesias con absidiolos añadidos, al estilo benedictino de Cluny. La fórmula de los largos transeptos donde podían disponerse más ábsides fue adoptada en tiempos de la arquitectura cisterciense que es donde más ejemplos pueden darse de este tipo de construcción. Este recurso fue adoptado también en las grandes catedrales (Tarragona, Lérida, Orense y Sigüenza), incluso con girolas a donde se abrian una serie de absidiolos-capilla.

Las plantas cruciformes fueron más raras, de cruz latina, aunque se pueden citar los ejemplos de la iglesia de Santa María "Iglesia de Santa María (Santa Marta de Tera)") en Santa Marta de Tera (provincia de Zamora), del siglo , y San Lorenzo de Zorita del Páramo (provincia de Palencia), cuya cabecera en este caso no es cuadrada sino semicircular. Como ejemplo de planta central, que se suelen asociar a modelos de Tierra Santa traídos por las órdenes militares, sobre todo por los caballeros templarios, están las iglesias de la Veracruz en Segovia "Iglesia de la Vera Cruz (Segovia)") y de Santa María de Eunate en Navarra[28]​ y la iglesia de San Marcos "Iglesia de San Marcos (Salamanca)") de Salamanca.

• - Plantas de iglesias románicas.

• - Santa María de Ripoll (880-1032).

• - San Martín de Frómista (1066-c.1100).

• - Monasterio de San Juan de las Abadesas (s. ).

• - Vera Cruz de Segovia "Iglesia de la Vera Cruz (Segovia)") (?-1208).

• - Santa María la Mayor de Toro "Colegiata de Santa María la Mayor (Toro)") (1170-mediados del s. ).

Sacristy

Sacristies did not exist in small churches or parish churches in the Romanesque era. In these churches, additions were made starting in the 19th century. But in those of the large monasteries or cathedrals, a space was adapted in the cloister, in the east wing, with an access door to the head.

Crypts

The crypts are one of the characteristic elements of the Romanesque. In the early Romanesque, its use spread due to the influence of the Franks. They were spaces built under the head of the church and intended to store the relics of the martyrs whose cult came from Carolingian influence. They usually have three naves with a groin vault roof, although there are more special examples, such as the circular crypt with a pillar in the center (Cuixá and San Pedro de Roda). Throughout the century they lost importance as recipients of relics and began to be built as something practical and necessary from the point of view of architecture, thus adapting the land on which the church would be built (such is the function of the crypt of the Leyre monastery). Throughout the century, few crypts were built and those that were built were always for reasons of uneven ground. Later some of them were given a funerary purpose.

• - Romanesque crypts.

• - Romanesque paintings from the main chapel of the crypt of Santa Maria del Perdón.

• - Crypt of the church of the Leyre monastery.

Grandstands

The tribunes were galleries on the side naves that were used for important people to follow the liturgy. They were hardly important in the Romanesque of Spain, their construction being very scarce. Two examples are known: San Vicente de Ávila and San Isidoro de León. Traditional historiography has assumed that this last church was a special space for Queen Sancha, wife of Ferdinand I, but more recent studies show that the dates do not agree. There is little news about this architectural addition.[29]​.

Triforiums

A clerestory is a gallery with arches that runs along the upper part of the smaller naves of a church, below the large windows of the main nave. Sometimes it also surrounds the apse at the same height. Its origin was purely aesthetic, since if the main nave was too high there would be a heavy space between the windows and the supporting arches of the lower side naves.

At first the clerestory arch was not made open, but later it was thought that it could serve to provide light and ventilation, while leaving a passage for services and surveillance of the building. This construction could be done because the side naves always extend into the central one, thus leaving a usable space of the same depth as the width of said side nave. This element had its true development in the Gothic era. In Spanish Romanesque architecture, triforiums are rare because instead the wall is usually left bare or a blind archway is built.

A good example of a triforium is that of the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. The side naves of this temple have two floors and the clerestory occupies the entire second, running through the entire building and facing the outside through a series of windows that provide light and the inside through semicircular arches. Another example occurs in the cathedral of Lugo, although in this case it does not cover all the walls. In San Vicente de Ávila the triforium is a dark gallery that does not fulfill the mission of providing light from the outside.

In some pilgrimage churches, the triforium was sometimes used as an overnight lodging area for pilgrims.[30]​.

• - Side elevation of the central nave of San Isidoro "Basilica de San Isidoro (León)") in León, with a solution prior to the clerestory: transverse arches and barrel vault.

• - Triforium of the Lugo cathedral.

Porticos and arcaded galleries

The portico is a space originally designed to prevent inclement weather. It was built in both rural and city churches, in front of the main door to protect it. In most cases they were made with a wooden structure that did not withstand the passage of time,[31]​ but in many cases the construction was in stone, giving rise to highly developed galleries that in some cases were true works of art.

The porticos were a reminder of the narthex of the Latin basilicas. They formed an advanced body on the central part of the main façade and if this façade had towers, then it occupied the space between them, as in the Portico of Glory in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, a jewel of Romanesque art. Other times it occupied the entire length of the façade, forming a covered space that was called "Galilea "Galilee (architecture)")" when it was dedicated to burial "without an altarpiece or altar, nor the appearance of a chapel", especially for "heroes or kings". When the tombs of the kings were added, it became a pantheon and was closed.

These porticos evolved into the typical arcaded galleries of the Segovian Romanesque. The exterior galleries are typical Spanish Romanesque constructions that do not appear in other countries. They can be confused with porticos and in fact this is what happens in common terminology, but they differ quite a bit in terms of construction, purpose and geographical location. They are found in a wide area of ​​Castilla; not only in the province of Segovia (the churches of San Martín "Iglesia de San Martín (Segovia)") and San Millán "Iglesia de San Millán (Segovia)") in the capital itself, church of the Asunción in Duratón "Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (Duratón)")) or in bordering areas (Jaramillo de la Fuente in the Sierra de la Demanda), but throughout Extremadura Castilian. In the province of Soria the first examples were found: San Esteban de Gormaz, San Pedro Apóstol church in Bocigas de Perales,[33]​ San Martín in Aguilera,[34]​ hermitage of Santa María de Tiermes in Montejo de Tiermes,[35]​ etc. It was traditional to build seven openings or arches, giving rise to a certain speculation about the symbolic meaning of the number seven in the Holy Scriptures.

They are arranged on a fairly high podium with simple or paired columns; They have a roof that is usually quite decorated and is covered with wood; They run along one or both of the side façades of the church, and sometimes also the main one. Their origin and primitive use are unknown, but over the years liturgical acts and even processions took place in them. After some time, the local people used the space of these galleries (which were protected and sheltered) for other purposes, such as meetings and neighborhood meetings and a burial area for the most powerful or influential. The custom of the most privileged being buried in this space began to be lost at the end of the century, when burials began to be carried out inside churches.

With the full Romanesque, the large sculptural doorway was introduced, topped by a tympanum also sculpted. The façade covers the entire thickness of the wall using archivolts so that it does not result in the shape of a tunnel; They are called flared arches. The arches of the archivolts become larger from inside to outside. Each archivolt rests directly on the capitals of the columns (which are also richly decorated) or on an impost that runs along the surface of each capital. The iconographic decoration is very abundant and usually forms a historical unit with the tympanum. Sometimes there is no tympanum but a large frieze, such as that of San Juan Bautista "Church of San Juan Bautista (Moarves de Ojeda)") in Moarves de Ojeda (Palencia). One of the characteristics (although with many exceptions) is that the façade is placed in a body that protrudes slightly from the façade, which is finished with a tile on corbels or corbels (west façade of San Pedro de Tejada in the province of Burgos; San Martín de Artaiz in Navarra, west façade).

The façades were built independently of the rest of the building and were often executed by teams of professional nomadic stonemasons, who arrived to carry out their work and left for other places where they were required. That is why many times the covers differ in time and style with the bulk of the factory, even the two or three doors of the same building can be of different make.

Location and number of doors: There is no general rule for the number of doors and their location. Sometimes there are up to three, located on the facades at the foot, north and south, coinciding with the ends of the transept (Zamora Cathedral, Ciudad Rodrigo Cathedral, etc.).

The main doorway is usually at the foot and is usually the access to the temple, but in many cases it is located in the south nave (San Pedro de Moarves, in Palencia). Sometimes the circumstances of the construction mean that the building lacks a doorway at the foot, as is the case of the church of San Miguel (Estella) "Iglesia de San Miguel (Estella)") which only has side doors because the west façade overlooks a steep terrain.

Decoration: There is a whole scale of decoration in the Spanish Romanesque doorways, from the simplest, in which only simple moldings are seen on the archivolts and smooth columns, or moldings with geometric and vegetal decoration (very abundant in the Romanesque of Soria); to the richest ones with exuberant iconography, such as that of the Portico of Glory in Santiago or that of the Portico of the Majesty in the Collegiate Church of Toro, where large, polychrome statues are seen in front of the columns.

The tympanum are presented without decoration or sculpted. Many of those that do not show decoration were originally painted, such as on the side doors of the Tarragona Cathedral or the humble tympanum of Santa María de Valdediós "Church of Santa María (Valdediós)") in Asturias. Examples of tympanums with sculpture are that of San Justo de Segovia, San Miguel de Estella "Church of San Miguel (Estella)"), San Isidoro de León, etc. A notable tympanum is that of the western portal of the basilica of San Vicente "Basilica de San Vicente (Ávila)") in Ávila, under five archivolts it is divided into two parts, with representations of scenes from the life of Lazarus. The mullion is occupied by the figure of Christ, with ten apostles standing on the sides, arranged in pairs in an attitude of conversation, except for those on the interior jambs, who face the mullion. This cover is compared to the Portico of Glory due to its many similarities.

Rosettes

The rose windows are circular windows made of stone, whose origin is in the oculus of the Latin basilicas. In Spain these rosettes were used since the 19th century. Throughout the Romanesque period the rose windows acquired importance and increased in size until they culminated in the Gothic period, a period in which the most beautiful and spectacular examples were found.

• - Romanesque rose windows.

• - Church of San Martín (Noya) "Church of San Martín (Noya)").

• - Valdedios Monastery.

• - Church of San Pedro (Ávila) "Church of San Pedro (Ávila)").

• - Church of Santo Domingo "Iglesia de Santo Domingo (Soria)") of Soria.

Pavement

In most buildings, a type of cement in the style of opus signinum, or a composition of stone and brick, was used. Archaeological studies have found few traces of original pavements. One of the most interesting remains is the mosaic that is still preserved from the transept of the church of the Ripoll monastery, signed by the artist Arnaldvs.[36]​ On many occasions the builders followed the Roman mosaic tradition. Another remains was found in the church of San Miguel in Barceloneta. Colored tiles were also used, such as those found in the apse of the Tarragona Cathedral, forming geometric drawings, in opus sectile in which interlacing dominates, with the colors standing out, orange, yellow, white and black.

The flooring of the Mudejar tradition combined tiles with bricks and was very common in the few Romanesque churches in Andalusia.

The cloister is an architectural element always built next to the cathedral churches and monastic churches, facing their north or south side. The cloister par excellence is the one spread by the Benedictine monks. The different rooms of the cloister, articulated on the four sides of a quadrangular patio, were dedicated to serving the life of the community. A large number of cloisters are preserved in the Spanish Romanesque, especially in the Catalan region.

• - Romanesque cloisters.

• - Cloister of the monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos.

• - Cloister of the Co-Cathedral of San Pedro de Soria.

• - Cloister of the Collegiate Church of Santillana del Mar.

• - Cloister of the monastery of Santa María de Valbuena (Valladolid).

• - Monastery of San Cugat del Vallés.

La arquitectura civil románica es casi desconocida y la mayoría de los edificios que se consideran de esta época, no lo son; aunque algunos conserven parte de los cimientos o alguna puerta o ventana de medio punto de época románica, su desarrollo y diseño arquitectónico pertenecen a tiempos más modernos.

Civil buildings

Domestic buildings, including palaces, were unpretentious; The houses were built with flimsy materials (in contrast to the grandeur of the churches), which were not able to withstand the passage of time. When they wanted to give importance to this civil architecture, what little there was was transformed and the new was built with Gothic trends. This is what happened with the so-called Romanesque palace of Diego Gelmírez, in Santiago de Compostela, which is actually a completely Gothic factory, or with the famous canonries of Segovia, whose structure already belongs to the Late Middle Ages.

In the city of León is the well-known palace of Doña Berenguela"), called romanesque palace, whose structure and planning actually correspond to the last years of the Late Middle Ages, far from the Romanesque, but which preserves (perhaps outside the original place) some Romanesque style windows. Likewise, in the Segovian city of Cuéllar there is the so-called palace of Pedro I "Palacio de Pedro I el Cruel (Cuéllar)") whose origin is supposed to date from the time of the Repopulation and perhaps even part of its foundations are Romanesque, but the current building is from the beginning of the century, even though it has a Romanesque façade that can be inherited from the previous building or reused from another. This palace is nevertheless considered one of the few examples of civil Romanesque. actually structures that correspond to the Gothic period.

As an example of what could have been a Romanesque palace built in stone, the testimony of the façade of the palace of the Kings of Navarra "Palacio de los Reyes de Navarra (Estella)") in Estella (Navarra) is preserved.

Bridges

Bridges were also built at this time. Just as happened with the castles, the bridges underwent subsequent changes and restorations so their current appearance does not correspond in most cases to that time. Along the entire Camino de Santiago there was a need to repair old bridges or build new ones to facilitate the passage of pilgrims. The best example of a Romanesque bridge that has reached the century almost intact is precisely on that path: it is Puente la Reina in Navarra, spanning the Arga River. It is a Romanesque work of the century. Also on the Camino de Santiago there are two other Romanesque bridges without changes, one in the Navarra town of Trinidad de Arre") over the Ulzama River and another, the Arrobi Bridge in Iroz, over the Urrobi River also in Navarra.[39]​ In Sangüesa, the eyes and extreme supports of the bridge are Romanesque in design.

Another Romanesque and pilgrim bridge was the one built in Ponferrada (León), called the Iron Bridge because of the railing that was made of this material. It was designed and built based on the needs of travelers to Santiago de Compostela who in this place had difficulties crossing the Sil River.

In Toledo there are two bridges over the Tagus River, the one in San Martín "Puente de San Martín (Toledo)") dates back to 1203, remodeled at the end of the 19th century, and the one in Alcántara "Puente de Alcántara (Toledo)") was a Muslim bridge, rebuilt in the 19th century. Valladolid had its first bridge over the Pisuerga River in the time of the lord of the town, Count Ansúrez, around the year 1080, the so-called Major Bridge. Originally it had semicircular arches that were later replaced by pointed arches. What is seen in the century of this bridge is far from the primitive Romanesque work.

• - Romanesque bridges.

• - Bridge in Trinidad de Arre") over the Ulzama River.

• - Arrobi Bridge.

• - Bujaruelo Bridge over the Ara River "Río Ara (Huesca)"), in the province of Huesca.

• - Besalú Bridge, angular in shape with seven unequal arches supported by pilasters on the living rock, with cutwaters. Originally Romanesque before 1071, it has been rebuilt many times.

military buildings

Almost the same thing happened in military architecture: castles, forts, towers and walls were completely restructured, adapting to new weapons and different ways of fighting. The medieval castles of the Romanesque period were built, some on previous buildings and others on new floors, but they all changed in the Gothic era and later. However, in Spain there remains one complete example of a Romanesque castle: the Loarre castle in Huesca, built in the 19th century, an authentic representation of what castles from the Romanesque period were.

Romanesque vestiges of the Calatrava la Nueva castle are preserved, a large fortress (46,000 square meters), built by the Calatrava knights between the years 1213 and 1217, after the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa. The documents kept in the archives detail the entire building and the layout of the rooms. In reality, it is a complex complex made up of a church, convent, inn, village and external perimeter, all heavily fortified. It was modified over the years, although you can still see the Cistercian door of the church, three large naves covered with brick vaults and three apses with pointed arches, and some Romanesque vaults in other areas. All the rooms have been destroyed and only the Romanesque foundations of the construction remain, some underground pieces and the spaces where the fortification described in the aforementioned documents was.

Also in the fortress of Segovia there are remains of Romanesque construction, in the rectangular hall of the Ajimeces whose floor plan is original from the century and which preserves remains of the Romanesque doorway and Romanesque openings with mullioned windows.

As for the walls, they had an important boost in the last years of the century to surround the new cities, even when walls and fences already existed in other points, built in remote times. The new Romanesque walls, in addition to defending, had the mission of delimiting a territory and distinguishing it from the surroundings, something very important at the time, given that belonging to an urban community brought with it special rights and obligations. The defensive walls evolved into fiscal walls or fences. The Romanesque wall par excellence is the wall of Ávila, which is preserved almost intact and very little adulterated.

The rock hermitages excavated in the rock date back to the beginning of the Early Middle Ages in Spain; Some of these Christian constructions evolved, expanded and changed their appearance with contributions from new art trends. The Romanesque made itself felt in buildings that had gone from being a hidden and secluded place of prayer to a small church with religious worship and liturgy for the people.

In the geographical environment of the north of Palencia bordering the south of Cantabria and the northwest of Burgos, an exceptional group of these rock churches is located in which you can see Romanesque elements (arches, columns, capitals). As examples can be given:

• - Cave Church of Saints Justo and Pastor of Olleros de Pisuerga.[40]​.

• - Cave church of Santa María de Valverde "Santa María de Valverde (Valderredible)") (its belfry) in the municipality of Valderredible (Cantabria).[41]​.

• - Hermitage of San Pelayo de Villacibio.

• - Church of San Miguel de Presillas (Burgos).

The science of archeology helps to understand the Romanesque era and its great constructions erected in a particular environment and under special political, economic and ideological circumstances. With regard to architecture, archaeologists can provide data not only from excavations[42]​ but also from the view of monuments that are standing, thanks to the study of what is called reading of walls.[43]​ In this field, archaeologists distinguish between construction stage (phases of execution or destruction of the work) and constructive element, which are the pieces studied individually and in the different stages, although they do not correspond to the time of the rest of the work; You can find a segment of impost, an inscription on the ashlar of a wall, a corbel, all of Romanesque execution in a Gothic work.

The study of the walls is very important for archeology that dedicates its efforts to this era. Its careful observation allows us to see, among other things, the well-known stonemason's marks that have sparked so many discussions and theories.[44]​ The marks are geometric incisions made in the ashlars of the walls, whose meaning is yet to be discovered but which can provide interesting data about geography, time of execution, stonemasons, etc.

There are also stone carving marks. Their study has revealed the technical resources used and the specific tools used in certain stone blocks. In the Romanesque they used a type of ax to grind and settle the ashlars, very typical of the time and whose use came at the same time as this style. It was a double tool, very similar to the alcotana; On one side it had a pickaxe and on the other a kind of axe. The edge of the ax left characteristic marks on the stone that over time have come to demonstrate which tool was used. These traces help to identify a Romanesque work, especially if it is a wall lacking other identifying elements. This tool can be seen represented quite often in historiated capitals or corbels.

With the Gothic came a technical change and the preferred tool was the carving knife, very similar to the previous one but with the serrated ax part, which also leaves special and recognizable traces.

The first transitional steps were taken in the architecture of Cistercian works with the use of the pointed arch (not yet too pointed), which would be one of the most evident characteristics of the Gothic. The evolution of the Romanesque gave rise to the new style, especially in architectural structures, since from the point of view of aesthetics the Gothic demonstrated a very different taste. After the trials, adventures and great studies of the Romanesque builders, the new style was able to triumph, whose most important representation is the great cathedrals. Since the end of the 20th century, the transition has been identified in the cathedral of Tarragona and in the cathedral of Lérida "Catedral de la Seo Vieja (Lérida)").[45]​.

• - Romanesque architecture in France.

• - Romanesque architecture in Italy.

• - Romanesque art in Castilla y León.

• - Romanesque art in Palencia.

• - Romanesque art of Catalonia.

• - Mudejar art.

• - Mayor Crespo, Gonzalo. Rock churches. Olleros de Pisuerga and others in its surroundings. Edilesa, 2007. ISBN 84-8012-618-2.

• - Bango Torviso, Isidro G.. Treasures of Spain. Vol. III. Romanesque. Espasa Calpe, 2000. ISBN 84-239-6674-7.

• - Bango Torviso, Isidro G. History of the Art of Castilla y León. Volume II. Romanesque Art. Ámbito Ediciones, Valladolid 1994. ISBN 84-8183-002-X.

• - Chamorro Lamas, Manuel. Romanesque routes in Galicia. Ediciones Encuentro, Madrid 1996. ISBN 84-7490-411-0.

• - García Guinea, Miguel Ángel. Romanesque in Palencia. Provincial Council of Palencia, 2002 (2nd revised edition). ISBN 84-8173-091-2.

• - García Guinea, Miguel Ángel and Blanco Martín, Francisco Javier. Initiation to Romanesque Art. Romanesque architecture: techniques and principles. Foundation of Santa María la Real. Aguilar de Campoo, 2000. ISBN 84-89483-13-2.

• - García Guinea, Miguel Ángel. Romanesque in Cantabria. Study Guides, Santander 1996. ISBN 84-87934-49-8.

• - Herrera Marcos, Jesús, Romanesque architecture and symbolism in Valladolid. Edited by Ars Magna, 1997. Provincial Council of Valladolid. ISBN 84-923230-0-0.

• - Lampérez y Romea, Vicente. History of Spanish Christian architecture in the Middle Ages. Volume I. Editorial Ámbito, 1999. ISBN 84-7846-906-0.

• - Lampérez y Romea, Vicente. History of Christian architecture. Gallach Manuals. Espasa Calpe Editorial, Madrid 1935.

• - Nuño González, Jaime. Initiation to Romanesque Art: Contribution of History, Archeology and auxiliary sciences to the knowledge of the Romanesque style. Aguilar de Campoo, 2000. ISBN 84-89483-13-2.

• - Pijoán, José. Summa Artis. General history of art. Vol. IX. Romanesque art 11th and 12th centuries. Espasa Calpe, Madrid 1949.

• - Wikimedia Commons hosts a multimedia category on Romanesque Architecture in Spain.

• - Interactive map of the Spanish Romanesque.

• - Portal about the Romanesque.