Church of Saint Michael, Romanesque church in Vielha, Catalonia, Spain
Church of Saint Michael is a medieval structure in Vielha with traditional Catalan architectural features, situated at the edge of the village center. The building combines Romanesque and Gothic styling and houses religious artwork inside, including a notable Christ sculpture.
The church was built in phases between the 12th and 13th centuries as a chapel of Vielha's now-vanished castle, which explains the fortified look of its bell tower. The three western bays date from the 12th century, the bay before the presbytery from the 15th, and the transept and apse were rebuilt in 1730. A 1510 privilege of Ferdinand II allowed the 14th-century tower to serve as a defence tower.
The church keeps the Crist de Mijaran, a life-size Romanesque bust from a Descent group, moved here in 1936 after the church of Santa Maria de Mijaran was destroyed in the Spanish Civil War. It is attributed to the Erill workshop of the Vall de Boí, and the Gothic altarpiece is linked to the "Mestre de Vielha".
The entrance portal sits inside an atrium formed by the ground floor of the bell tower, reached through a round arch; the doorway itself is late 13th or early 14th century. The tower rises 40 m, its slate spire 13.5 m. Look up at the five pointed archivolts, carved with 59 figures.
The Crist de Mijaran is a life-size bust from a Romanesque Descent from the Cross, probably carved in the 12th–13th century workshop of Erill-la-Vall in the Boí Valley. It was moved here in 1936 after the church of Santa Maria de Mijaran was destroyed in the Spanish Civil War.
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