Whose symbol was the scallop shell?

Think for 1 min what today’s lesson could be about.

Santiago de CompostelaGalicia, Spain

1075 AD (date of the present cathedral)

Scallop shell, symbol of St. James

Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, Galicia, Spain. 1075 AD.

Santiago de Compostela Cathedral is a cathedral in Galicia, Spain. The cathedral is the believed burial-place of Saint James the Greater, one of the apostles of Jesus Christ. It is the destination of the Way of St. James (Camino de Santiago), a major historical pilgrimage route since the Early Middle Ages. Pilgrimages to the tomb of St. James began as early as the 9th century, and by the 11th century, the cathedral was even drawing pilgrims from England. The building is a Romanesque structure - with later Gothic and Baroque additions.There is a statue of St. James at the altar, and his relics lie beneath the cathedral's high altar in a silver coffer; they can be viewed from the crypt.In the cathedral's Capilla del Relicario (Chapel of the Reliquary) is a gold crucifix, dated 874, containing a piece of the true Cross.

Santiago de Compostela: floor plan1. portal2. tower3. nave4. aisle5. crossing

6. transept7. choir8. apse 9. radiating chapels10. ambulatory

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West end

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East end

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Entrance to the cathedral is through the Pórtico de la Gloria, carved in 1188 by Maestro Mateo. Originally the exterior west door, it now stands just inside, behind the newer Baroque (Obradoiro) facade. The shafts, tympana and archivolts of the three doorways are a mass of sculpture depicting the Last Judgement.

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1. Tympanum usually depicts Last Judgement scene (Christ is symmetrically central, often in an oval, mandorla shape, flanked by the 4 Evangelists and the 24 Elders of the Apocalypse)

2. Trumeau, reserved for Christ, the Virgin or important Saints3. Jamb figures, usually Saints and Apostles4. Capitals are decorated with vegetation or Biblical narratives Sculpture is a simple narrative, aimed at educating illiterate believers. Naturalism is less

important than the religious content.

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On either side of the portal are Prophets of the Old Testament, including Daniel, who seems to be smiling. The arches over the side doors represent Purgatory and the Last Judgment, with Christ in glory presiding in the centre. He is flanked by the Four Evangelists and surrounded by the 24 Elders of the Apocalypse playing medieval musical instruments. Below the Christ figure on the central column is a statue of St. James and, at the bottom, a self-portrait of Maestro Mateo. Since the Middle Ages it has been the custom of pilgrims to pray with their fingers pressed into the roots of the Tree of Jesse below Saint James, and five deep indentations have been worn into the marble as a result. Finally, pilgrims touch foreheads with Mateo for wisdom.

Sources and extra (optional) reading:

http://www.catedraldesantiago.es/ing/webcatedral.html http://www.cntraveller.com/photos/photo-galleries/worth-the-walk/alter (CondeNast Traveller) http://www.learn.columbia.edu/treasuresofheaven/shrines/ (Columbia Uni)http://www.sacred-destinations.com/spain/santiago-cathedral http://www.britishmuseum.org/whats_on/exhibitions/treasures_of_heaven.aspx http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathedral_of_Santiago_de_Compostela (exterior & interior)http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/jun/30/relics-pilgrims-medieval-cult-martyrs (article in the Guardian)http://uk.ask.com/wiki/Regional_characteristics_of_Romanesque_architecture (Ask Jeeves)http://www.spainisculture.com/en/destinos_principales/santiago_de_compostela.html http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephen_dedalus/2297208171/ (Reliquary chapel)