Santa María Magdalena de Zamora, Zamora, Spain

Built in the 12th century, Santa María Magdalena is a small Romanesque church of the Templars. At their suppression, it was given to the Venerable Order of Saint John. The exterior features a deeply recessed south entrance, with circular arches and shafts, as well as ornate Romnnesque work. The rose window, formed with small columns, is similar to the Temple Church in London.

The interior includes canopied tombs dating to the 13th century, supported by spiral and fluted shafts. Against the north wall, there is a tomb under a canopy supported by three shafts. The sepulchre itself is plain, carved with a cross; the effigy of its occupant is carved, as if lying on a bed, out of a bold block of stone, and inserted in the wall; above this is the soul (in the shape of a head with wings) supported by angels.

References:

Wikipedia

Religious sites in Spain

User Reviews

Raquel Calvo Linacero (5 months ago)
Architecturally it is unique. Romamica, it has a sepulcher with a canopy. Well explained and easily accessible

Fonomix Lorian (10 months ago)
Very clean and very careful

Luisa Andres (10 months ago)
Jewel of the Romanesque conservation / rehabilitation preference in Zamora, idem Next to the convent, with the passage of the Virgin

José Antonio Gallego (11 months ago)
Spectacular. Precious Romanesque sculptures.

Marcio Silva (2 years ago)
Igreja românica com belos pormenores no arco da porta e no interior. Contém um sepulcro que se julga ter sido destinado a D. Urraca de Portugal, filha de D. Afonso Henriques e rainha consorte de Leão.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Honza Soukup

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Angelokastro

Angelokastro is a Byzantine castle on the island of Corfu. It is located at the top of the highest peak of the island"s shoreline in the northwest coast near Palaiokastritsa and built on particularly precipitous and rocky terrain. It stands 305 m on a steep cliff above the sea and surveys the City of Corfu and the mountains of mainland Greece to the southeast and a wide area of Corfu toward the northeast and northwest.

Angelokastro is one of the most important fortified complexes of Corfu. It was an acropolis which surveyed the region all the way to the southern Adriatic and presented a formidable strategic vantage point to the occupant of the castle.

Angelokastro formed a defensive triangle with the castles of Gardiki and Kassiopi, which covered Corfu"s defences to the south, northwest and northeast.

The castle never fell, despite frequent sieges and attempts at conquering it through the centuries, and played a decisive role in defending the island against pirate incursions and during three sieges of Corfu by the Ottomans, significantly contributing to their defeat.

During invasions it helped shelter the local peasant population. The villagers also fought against the invaders playing an active role in the defence of the castle.

The exact period of the building of the castle is not known, but it has often been attributed to the reigns of Michael I Komnenos and his son Michael II Komnenos. The first documentary evidence for the fortress dates to 1272, when Giordano di San Felice took possession of it for Charles of Anjou, who had seized Corfu from Manfred, King of Sicily in 1267.

From 1387 to the end of the 16th century, Angelokastro was the official capital of Corfu and the seat of the Provveditore Generale del Levante, governor of the Ionian islands and commander of the Venetian fleet, which was stationed in Corfu.

The governor of the castle (the castellan) was normally appointed by the City council of Corfu and was chosen amongst the noblemen of the island.

Angelokastro is considered one of the most imposing architectural remains in the Ionian Islands.

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