2014 - October : A 5 day visit to the Ávila & Segovia area
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Loaded with raingear, umbrellas and warm clothing a group of 26 departed for a visit to the cities of Ávila and Segovia in Spain. Despite the weather forecast predicting lots of rain during the entire trip, the gods smiled upon us and we had lovely weather throughout and not a drop of rain.
Santa Theresa procession (Video 1)
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Approaching Ávila (which, at 1131 m, is the highest provincial capital in Spain) we were amazed by the imposing walls and towers of the city. After checking in at the hotel we found that it was the eve of the 500th birthday of Santa Theresa of Ávila and as a consequence the city was buzzing with activity and festivities, including a procession, carnival, and fireworks, and an open air mass being planned for the next morning.
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The next morning we went to the interpretation center and site of Castro de las Cogotas, a settlement of the Vettones, who are probably of Celtic origin. Some 30 families lived there from 700 BC through 100 AD. They were hunter-gatherers of honey, mushrooms, acorns, and almonds. The latter 2 being ground into flower on millstones. They also kept cattle, mainly horses and cows. Characteristic for Cogotas are the large stone bovine images. These did not have any religious significance but were placed in the meadows as an indication of a good pasture field. The settlement was surrounded by a defensive wall, which was topped by a wooden fence. In front of the wall sharp stones had been placed to ward off intruders. There were 2 entrances and at the main entrance the wall curved inside to better defend against invaders. Outside the wall a necropolis with 2000 graves was found. Their death were cremated, the ashes put in an urn which was covered with a stone and buried together with the tools of the deceased, e.g. sickles and axes.
Interpretation center Castro de las Cogotas (Video 2)
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The walls of Ávila (Video 3)
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After lunch we visited the city of Ávila on a guided tour. The city walls are 2.5 km long and surround the entire city. The origins date back from Roman times but in 1085 were increased and strengthened by the Moors up to a height of 12 m and a width of 3 m. With its 9 gates and 88 semicircular solid towers jutting out of the wall it is one of the finest examples of medieval fortifications in Europe.The Cathedral of Ávila has both a religious and defensive architecture. The eastern apse juts out of the city wall and forms part of the defensive structure. This part having been started in the 12th century is in roman style while the western part dates from the 14th century and is in gothic style. The upper parts are built in bricks typical of Mudejar style. For the inner walls an iron containing limestone was used which created special effects.
Thereafter we left for Segovia where the next day we had a guided tour of the city. Segovia was the seat of the kings Alfons X and Henry IV of Castille. In the 15th century Segovia had its golden age because of the quality wool and textiles being produced there. After the death of Henry IV the Castillian nobles refused to acknowledge his daughter Joanna as heir to the throne, and after some struggle her half-sister Isabella la Catholica became queen of Castille. When her grandson Charles became Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire in 1520, the royal residence moved to Madrid. Mistrust against the Flanders educated Charles V and his administration resulted in an uprising by the communities of Castille, which ended in 1521 by the beheading of the rebel leaders including the Segovia born Juan Bravo. In the course of the 16th century the importance of Segovia started to wane.
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The guided tour of Segovia started in front of our hotel at the Plaza San Martin. The plaza has outstanding buildings like the 12th century Iglesia San Martin with its 3 porticoed galleries and sculptured capitals where the nobles and merchants used to meet. Other buildings include the 14th c. Torreón de los Loyola, the 15th c. Casa de Juan Bravo, and the Casa Solier in plateresco style with a roof terrace where the textiles made in Segovia were hung to dry. In the old Jewish quarter we visited the old main Synagogue, which is now part of the Convent of Corpus Christi.
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The Roman Aquaduct in Segovia (Video 4)
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We saw many houses in the esgrafico style. This is a decoration of the outside walls with patterned stucco in a different colour than the background. This was done to embellish the building while at the same time hiding the poor quality of the building materials. Many Jewish houses consisted of bricks and poles. Passing along the old defensive wall, the Plaza Mayor and the Casa de los Picos we arrived at the Aquaducto Romano which is symbolic for Segovia. The aquaduct has a total length of 15 km of which 728 m is above ground having 158 arches with the tallest being 28 m high. It was probably built at the time of Domitianus in the 1st c AD.
Our lunch was in a restaurant housed in a converted part of a nunnery. We were able to visit the nunnery and admire the cloister and the original mudejar ceilings. Although there must have been many nuns at some time –as there was a room with dining space for some 100 persons – there are currently only 8 old nuns left.
Our lunch was in a restaurant housed in a converted part of a nunnery. We were able to visit the nunnery and admire the cloister and the original mudejar ceilings. Although there must have been many nuns at some time –as there was a room with dining space for some 100 persons – there are currently only 8 old nuns left.
The next day we visited the city of Cuéllar, an hour’s drive from Segovia. Being in the front line of the battle between the Moorish and the Christians, the population of the area had largely moved away from the battle zones. The city was finally sacked by the Moorish and its population enslaved. After the reconquest of Toledo in 1085, Alfonso VI strived to repopulate the area by giving privileges and knighthoods. In the 13th century, enriched by the wool trade, Cuéllar was one of the most important towns in the north of Spain. Many palaces and churches (23) were built. On our walk though the city we visited a couple of these churches. One was the Mudejar style Church of St. Sebastian (1247). Inside there are 4 graves containing mummified skeletons. One of them contains the body of Isabel de Zuazo along with 47 indulgences (15th century). In another is her husband (who died of syphilis) together with 2 babies, who based on DNA analysis appear not to be his. This church was attributed to the “ indulgences”. Next was the gothic chapel of Mary Magdalene (1429) pertaining to a hospital where mostly people with venereal diseases were cared for. This chapel is thus attributed to “penance”. Third was the church of St. Andrew, attributed to the “ablution of sins” symbolised by the image of the crucified Christ at the Mountain of the Cross. We then visited the castle which dates from before 1306. It is square with 4 towers on the corners. In 1464 it was donated to the Duke of Albuquerque by Henry IV. Some of the rooms contain evocations of life at that time.
The castle in Cuéllar (Video 5)
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Trying the spear thrower in Enabralejos (Video 6)
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After a sumptuous lunch at restaurant La Mesta in Prádena we visited the caves of Enebralejos. The limestone caves were used as necropolis from 2000 to 1600 BC. The bodies were first stored in the more accessible parts of the cave system until only the bones remained. The bones together with tools and utensils of the deceased were then superficially buried deeper into the cave in a pot with stone cover. On the site above the caves was a settlement from the copper age. There is a simulation of a village in which the life of hunting, fishing, leather processing, agriculture and copper melting of that time is portrayed.
On the last day of our trip we went to visit the archaeological museum of Segovia, under the expert direction of Professor José Ignacio Gallego Revilla of the University of Madrid.
Cathedral in Segovia (Video 7)
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There were objects of 70,000 BC (cave paintings of a horse) up to the Visigoth time (8th century). He gave a good account of the transition of man in the Palaeolithic (hunters and gatherers) to humans in the Neolithic (farmers and shepherds). An important factor in this transition was the ability to transform primary products into secondary products. For instance from milk to cheese, acorns and seeds to flour and bread. This created trade, differences in wealth, and made it possible to achieve large-scale projects such as huge grave monuments. Afterwards we also visited the Cathedral of Segovia.
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In the afternoon we visited the glass museum in the old glass factory of La Granja, not far from Segovia. Thanks to the proximity of the river which ensured sufficient water supply, the availability of silicium (sand) and an abundance of pine forests for the furnaces, the conditions were ideal for Charles III to set up the royal glass factory in la Granja. The current building dates back to 1770 and is a wonderful example of industrial architecture in Spain. Currently it is used as a museum, in which old instruments and objects from the factory as well as modern glass compositions are exhibited. On Sunday Manuel drove us, tired but content, back to the Algarve.
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Glass factory museum of La Granja (Video 8)
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