Santa Maria de Ripoll

The monastery church of Santa Maria de Ripoll is a pioneering Romanesque building in the town of Ripoll in Catalonia, of which only the cloister but original. The present church is largely the result of a restoration in the late 19th century.

History

The Benedictine monastery was founded in 879 by the Hairy Wilfried, Guifré el PILOS. One of his motives was the settlement of the valley of the " Rio Ripoll " and thus extending his possessions.

The consecration of the church took place on April 20, 888 in the name of " Santa Maria ". Wilfried made ​​his son for the first Radulf Dept. The monastery grew rapidly. Santa María de Ripoll became a major cultural center, especially because of its large collection of ancient writings. Upon the death of Abbot Oliva ( 1046 ), the library already included 246 manuscripts. One of the famous Bibles from Ripoll is now in the Vatican Library.

Under Oliva made ​​the foundations of the daughter monasteries of Montserrat and Saint -Martin- du- Canigou. The importance of the abbey you can also recognize the fact that Gerbert of Aurillac, later Pope Sylvester II, received his education here.

Santa Maria was the cultural center of Catalonia until the 15th century. On February 2, 1428, a major earthquake destroyed large parts of the abbey, which was then rebuilt in the gothic style.

The monks left the monastery in 1835, after which it fell sharply. 1886 arranged Josep Morgades, Bishop of Vic, the reconstruction of where the original condition has been largely restored and completed in 1893 with the consecration of the church.

Abbey Church

The appearance of the church was largely determined by the two outstanding abbots Arnulf and Oliva ( Abbot of 1008-1046 ). Arnulf had - probably originally built in the Mozarabic style - can be expanded church on five ships with as many apses, provided with a wooden roof. The church was after the work is 60 m long and 40 m wide. 977 the extension was completed.

In 1032 Abbot Oliva took after a trip to Rome - impressed by the predecessor of the present St. Peter's Basilica - the key to the future of Catalan architecture changes: He left after the model of Old St. Peter a transept with apses 7 grow. The entrance was provided with a portico flanked by two bell towers in the Lombard style. With Ripoll " set a new trend " has been in Christian Spain. According to this construction of the Mozarabic style was rarely used, the " Roman " prevailed. With Ripoll Romanesque began in Spain.

Inside, the church is quite dark: the windows are not made of glass, but made ​​of alabaster. The reconstructions in the 19th century reduced the number of vessels from the original five to three. In the crypt are the remains of some of the Counts of Besalu and Barcelona.

The cloister consists of two floors. The lower floor was begun after 1180 and was completed in the early 14th century. The upper floor dates from the 15th and 16th centuries. The Corinthian capitals influenced the arches depict scenes from ancient mythology or everyday life.

The most important work of art in the church is the portal of the 12th century. The shape reminds strongly of Roman triumphal arches. Consisting of large blocks of stone portal was strongly affected by the ruin after the dissolution of the monastery. Nevertheless, it is a fine example of Romanesque architecture in Catalonia. The front side is provided with a relief from the mid-12th century. This consists of 7 levels, so-called " registers ". In the center is Christ as ruler of the world, surrounded by the symbols of the four evangelists. Many mythological animals are mortal sins Represents the portal flanked by two partially destroyed statues of the Apostles Peter and Paul. In addition, scenes from the life of the apostles as well as depictions of the 12 months there.