Monastery of Santa María de Oseira

The Camino de Santiago in the Ourense province is a rhythmic succession of vast landscapes with endless horizons …

The sober style of the Cistercian architecture, which can especially be appreciated in the facades of the church and monastery, has earned its common comparison with the El Escorial monastery. Though this type of simile is cliché and overused, maybe this is one of the more justified ones.

The main object saved from the 16th century fire was the enormous church abbey, which has been brought up to date with minor touch-ups and primarily decorative additions. The Gothic sober style of its stonework is the paradigm of Cistercian postulations on precision in architecture.

The full area is surrounded by wide lateral naves that also surround the major chapel as part of an architectural feature known as an ambulatory. This circuit around the perimeter is considered to be the influence of pilgrimage churches such as Santiago de Compostela Cathedral itself.

The purity of the chancel, with the altar separated from the ambulatory by columns that visually connect both spaces, mean that this temple is considered one of the great masterpieces of medieval Cistercian architecture in Spain.

This part of the church is where most of the preserved decoration has been concentrated, with highlights including the mural paintings on the arches and the dome above the transept.

However, Santa María de Oseira is much more than just its church. The whole monastery celebrates stonework, as in the impressive staircase of honor in a Herrerian style, with its 24 steps decorated with diamond stones.

The most sought-after residence for visitors and tourists is probably the legendary chapterhouse, with its twisted columns and its arches that are like palm trees as their ribs multiply. It is an architectural spectacle, achieved through the incredible expertise of the stonemasons.

The huge height of the cloister of the Pináculos, built from the mid 16th century to accommodate individual cells, is a reminder that this was the largest Galician monastery of its time.

In these spaces for daily living, the drops of water, like a mantra, transport us back to the sounds of the past. If we pay attention, in the silence of the stone, we can distinguish the steps of the monks who lived in this formidable monastery for centuries.