#romansque

Another fantastic capital from the exterior of San Juan Rabanera

Location: Soria, Spain

c. 12th century

I like the highly stylized fruit above these guys.

Kaya sa isang Romantic na paraan, sasabihin ko 'to.

Recently I attended the Amigos del Románico conference that was held in Madrid, Spain on November 26th. I was able to attend three very interesting and diverse talks.

The first talk was presented by Dr. Fernando Labad Sasiaín, called Inicio del Crucifijo (Beginning of the Cruficix). Dr. Labad Sasiaín produced an amazing timeline tracing the first appearences of the crucifix as a significant icon in Christianity.

The cross did not appear as a symbol of Christianity until the third century and while the cross was used the Chi Rho was far more popular and present in Christian iconography. The crucifix did not appear until fifth century and even then it wasn't very prominent. Dr. Labad Sasiaín provided several interesting examples showing the uses and time periods of use. He used this base information to illustrate the different styles that appear during the Romanesque period. He also illustrated the differences in Christ's portrayal in Byzantine art and Carolingian art.

The next presenter was Carmen Leal, who's topic was Ireland and Its Monasteries in the Golden Age. Although I found some of her information interesting, the talk consisted more of sharing the stories and history that was related with various sites. She shared stories connected to the high towers or Cloitech and some of their speculated functions.