Historic Cities · Spain
Santiago de Compostela through the ages
Santiago de Compostela, alternatively abbreviated to Santiago or Compostela, is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain. It is located in the province of A Coruña, in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of St.
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Santiago de Compostela in 1200
Pilgrims' Compostela
This is Compostela at the height of the medieval pilgrimage, when the cathedral's west portico by Master Mateo is newly carved and the city receives long columns of walkers. The walk follows the pilgrims' approach from Monte do Gozo down the streets, through gates and market squares, past hospices and the archbishop's palace, ending beneath the cathedral's busy south front.
A dense knot of low granite buildings, narrow wet streets and close arcades, rooflines of simple slate and rough tile, and the newly carved mass of the cathedral rising above them; granite walls wear dark with rain. Markets and hospitals crowd the squares, pilgrims with scallop shells and hooked staffs thread between masons' scaffolds and clerics in sober habits, while gulls and the river mists add a grey Atlantic light.
The walk — 21 streets, squares and views
Monte do Gozo → Porta do Camiño → Rúa do Franco → Rúa do Vilar → Praza de Mazarelos → Praza do Obradoiro → Pórtico de la Gloria → Cathedral Steps → Palacio de Xelmirez → Praza da Quintana → …
Step inside — 12 interiors
Tavern Hall on Franco · Nave and Incense Crossing · West Porch Pilgrim Portal · Apostle's Crypt · Archbishop's Audience Hall · Palace Kitchen Hearth · Monastic Refectory · Hospice Dormitory · Covered Market Hall · Silversmith's Workshop · Money Changers' Arcade · Campanile Bell Chamber
Planned from the Wikipedia record: Camino de Santiago.
Santiago de Compostela in 1750
Baroque Compostela
The Romanesque core of Compostela has been newly dressed in Baroque granite: the Obradoiro façade’s twin towers now rise above the square and the Hostal dos Reis Católicos fronts the cathedral steps. This walk follows arriving pilgrims through the Porta do Camiño into narrow, wet granite streets, past monastic masses and the university courts to high viewpoints over the city.
A compact old town of dark, fine-grained granite blocks and red-brown tile roofs, where newly carved Baroque ornament crowns Romanesque masses. The Obradoiro’s twin towers puncture a low skyline; monastery roofs and cloisters cluster close to the cathedral. Streets are narrow, cobbled and often running downhill toward the cathedral, their stones polished by rain to a faint silver sheen. Frequent overcast skies and Atlantic moisture lend a muted, cool light.
The walk — 22 streets, squares and views
Monte do Gozo → Porta do Camiño → Rúa do Pino → Rúa da Acibechería → Praza da Quintana → Rúa das Praterías → Praza do Obradoiro → Obradoiro Façade → Hostal dos Reis Católicos → Pazo de Raxoi → …
Step inside — 14 interiors
Chapel at Monte do Gozo · Pilgrims' Dormitory Hall · Apothecary and Herb Room · Portico of the Glory Nave · Silversmith's Main Workshop · Presbytery beneath the High Altar · Chapel of the Reliquary Treasure · Main Cloister of the Hostal · Pilgrims' Refectory Hall · Council Chamber of the Pazo · Fish‑Kitchen of the Tavern · Monastery Church of San Martiño · Monastic Kitchen at San Martiño · Fonseca College Cloister
Planned from the Wikipedia record: Santiago de Compostela.
In this city
Landmarks of Santiago de Compostela — see each in its prime
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