Church of San Jorge (Manzaneda) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Iglesia de San Jorge (Manzaneda)
Location	Manzaneda, Gozón, Asturias
Country	Spain

The Church of San Jorge of Manzaneda (in Spanish, la iglesia de San Jorge de Manzaneda) is a historic church located in Gozón, Spain. Even though it's small, it's a great example of Asturian Romanesque architecture. This style was popular in the late 1100s and early 1200s. The church is special because of its old design and how well its surroundings have been kept.

What Does the Church Look Like?

The Church of San Jorge is found near the town of Alvaré, in Manzaneda. Its size is typical for country churches built in the Romanesque style in Asturias.

It has a single rectangular main room, called a nave, with no smaller sections or side chapels. The front of the church has two main parts. One part shows building ideas from the local area. The other part includes designs that were popular in Romanesque art across Europe.

Special Decorations

Many parts of the church show its Romanesque style through decorations. You can see zigzag patterns and a large arch with some simple pictures. The back part of the church, called the apse, has special stone supports called corbels. These corbels are carved with images of people and animals.

The church was built using mostly rough, uneven stones called Sillarejo masonry. This simple building style matches the local traditions and shows that there might not have been many resources available when it was built.

Inside the Church

The ceiling of the church mixes different old building ideas. The main room (nave) has a wooden frame for its ceiling. At the very front of the church, there's an arch and a rounded, tunnel-like ceiling called a barrel vault. Behind this is a half-circle area, which is the apse.

We don't have many old records about the church's construction. However, its history is connected to the nearby Palace of Manzaneda. This palace was built in the 1600s around a much older medieval tower.

A Look at Its History

It's hard to know the exact date the church was built because there are no written records from that time. However, experts believe it was built between the late 1100s and early 1200s. This is because it shows many features of the Asturian Romanesque style from that period.

Over the years, the church has had some changes, but it's thought to be about the same size as it was originally.

Changes Over Time

Small changes were made to the church over many centuries. For example:

• A new window was added to the south side of the apse.
• An entrance on the south side was closed off.
• A bell gable (a wall with openings for bells) was added in 1774.

Sadly, the church was badly damaged by fire during a civil war in 1936. Much of what was inside the church was ruined. A big restoration project took place between 1942 and 1950. During this work, the upper parts of the nave walls were changed, and some old corbels in that area were removed.

See also

• Asturian art
• Catholic Church in Spain
• In Spanish: Iglesia de San Jorge (Manzaneda) para niños