The Church of Vilar de Donas

It has a Latin cruciform footprint, with one nave and a gabled wooden roof. At the end of the transept (the cross part of the building's cruciform shape) are three apses; the central one being the largest.

The only vestiges of the old monastic cloister are the three-pointed arches along one side of the portico, in front of the church's western facade. There are references to this cloister in historical documents.

The late-Romanesque entrance is reminiscent of the work of Master Mateo, the sculptor and architect responsible for Santiago Cathedral's Portico of Glory.

It has five archivolts, intricately decorated with carved motifs. Above the door is a projecting cornice, supported by an elegant frieze, above which are statues of St. Michael, St. Bartholomew, and the Virgin and Child.

They are intricately made, with palmette motifs at one end and arrowheads at the other.

More artistic treasures await the visitor inside the church, such as the only example of a 15th-century Gothic baldachin in a Galician church. At the top of the structure is a miniature version of a fortress, which is identical to the nearby Castle of Pambre.

Of all the artistic gems hidden in this church, the Gothic frescoes on the walls of the apse, painted for the Compostela Holy Year in 1434 (commemorated whenever July 25, the day of Santiago the Elder, falls on a Sunday) are the most impressive. They are considered to be one of Galicia's greatest works of art.

Perhaps even more eye-catching are the paintings of ladies and gentlemen of the period. With their medieval headdresses, they allow us a glimpse of life at the time when the church was being decorated.

There are also several headstones and tombs inside the church, belonging to knights of the Order of Santiago. They tell the story of the church and its close association with the St. James Way.

The monastery was donated to this Order in the late 12th century. Its main purpose was to watch over the St. James Way, and to protect pilgrims from attackers.

The Order of Santiago founded its priory in Vilar de Donas. The deed of donation established it as the burial place of Galician knights of the Order, and as the place in which its annual chapter would be held.