Monasterio de Veruela
The Veruela Monastery, located in Zaragoza, at the gates of Moncayo, the main mountain in the Iberian Mountains, is one of the three Cistercian abbeys found in this province, along with the Monasterio de Piedra and the Monasterio de Rueda. It dates from the 12th century and is in a more than decent state of conservation. Magnificent construction, magnificent rooms and magnificent decorative details.
Like all Cistercian monasteries, its center is the great Gothic cloister, around which the rest of the rooms are located: the church, the refectory, the chapter house... In general, the monastery belongs to the primitive Gothic style, although, in the initial phases of it still incorporate elements of the Romanesque. The church is solid, imposing, with thick columns; closed with ribbed vaults and of colossal dimensions, especially in length and height. In the presbytery is the image of the Virgin of Veruela. It has three naves, ambulatory and side chapels. The front arches of the central nave are Romanesque in style, while the transverse arches of the two side naves are pointed arches. The sacristy is also monumental. The refectory is a large rectangular room with decorated ribs in the vault. But, above all, the chapter house stands out. It is not too big, but its access with semicircular arches and serial columns give it an imposing appearance, as it blends in with the ribbed ribs in the vault. In it, underground, are the tombs of some abbots of the monastery. You can also visit the kitchen of the monks and the cilla, or cellar where they made and stored the wines they produced.
In this monastery, Gustavo Adolfo Bécker spent some time in retirement, convalescing, where he wrote his best-known rhymes. With access from the corridors of the cloister, there is a space -inside the garden- flanked by Gothic arches on its four sides, a sink, just in front of the refectory whose mission was that the monks could wash their hands before sitting down to eat . The cloister has a raised floor above the Gothic invoice, in the Renaissance style. In short, a magical place where the visitor seems to go back to medieval times and merge with the environment; a place for art lovers due to its richness and variety. A place also to spend a day of retreat, reflection, rest, in an incomparable religious setting.
Like all Cistercian monasteries, its center is the great Gothic cloister, around which the rest of the rooms are located: the church, the refectory, the chapter house... In general, the monastery belongs to the primitive Gothic style, although, in the initial phases of it still incorporate elements of the Romanesque. The church is solid, imposing, with thick columns; closed with ribbed vaults and of colossal dimensions, especially in length and height. In the presbytery is the image of the Virgin of Veruela. It has three naves, ambulatory and side chapels. The front arches of the central nave are Romanesque in style, while the transverse arches of the two side naves are pointed arches. The sacristy is also monumental. The refectory is a large rectangular room with decorated ribs in the vault. But, above all, the chapter house stands out. It is not too big, but its access with semicircular arches and serial columns give it an imposing appearance, as it blends in with the ribbed ribs in the vault. In it, underground, are the tombs of some abbots of the monastery. You can also visit the kitchen of the monks and the cilla, or cellar where they made and stored the wines they produced.
In this monastery, Gustavo Adolfo Bécker spent some time in retirement, convalescing, where he wrote his best-known rhymes. With access from the corridors of the cloister, there is a space -inside the garden- flanked by Gothic arches on its four sides, a sink, just in front of the refectory whose mission was that the monks could wash their hands before sitting down to eat . The cloister has a raised floor above the Gothic invoice, in the Renaissance style. In short, a magical place where the visitor seems to go back to medieval times and merge with the environment; a place for art lovers due to its richness and variety. A place also to spend a day of retreat, reflection, rest, in an incomparable religious setting.
