Church of San Salvador de Priesca

San Salvador de Priesca is a pre-Romanesque church in the place Priesca belongs to the municipality of Villaviciosa. It is located about 50 km northeast of Oviedo, capital of Asturias, Spain

History

The church was consecrated in 921. This date was carved on a stone foundation, which was lost in the course of restoration work at the beginning of the 20th century. The inscription has survived and is called as the date of the consecration of the eighth day of the Kalends of October, the Spanish era 959, corresponding to September 24, 921 BC. In 1913 the building to Monumento Nacional ( Bien de Interès Cultural ) was told. In 1936, during the Spanish Civil War, established a fire at great damage and destroyed a part of the early medieval frescoes. In the 1990s there was a renovation during which renewed the wooden ceilings and frescoes were preserved. The church is now used as a parish church.

Architecture

San Salvador de Priesca is a three-nave, built of hewn stone basilica with three rectangular, barrel vaulted apses. Main and side aisles wearing wooden ceilings and are separated by three arches resting on pillars, with simple supporting capitals. In the West, a vestibule connects with two lateral side rooms and an overlying gallery. With the division into nine parts by volume ( three apses, three ships, entrance hall and two adjoining rooms ) on a rectangular plan San Salvador de Priesca corresponds to the typical scheme Asturian churches. About the central apse is a small, inaccessible and out only by a twin window ( ajimez ) open space, a so-called cámara oculta, such as the San Baudelio de Berlanga also found in other pre-Romanesque churches of Spain. The open bell tower ( espadaña ) in the west and an extension to the south aisle, which is used as a sacristy, are additions of a later period.

Window

The two rectangular windows on the east façade have retained their original carved in stone window grilles. They are divided into three fields. The upper and lower field consists of three small arches, the center of a rosette. Preserved are also two twin windows, one on the east façade and another to the sacristy. The latter is no longer in its original location, but was later incorporated into the sacristy. It is surrounded by a Alfiz - frame - suggest as features of Islamic architecture on Mozarabic influence - such as the horseshoe arches of the gable window.

Sculptural decoration

The barrel vault of the apse are worn by blind arcades, said the apses are just painted. The columns have Pyramidenstumpfkapitelle with tow band rings and an abacus, which is provided with a Flechtbanddekor intertwined straps. The capitals of the arcades are decorated by Corinthian model and have two rows of stylized leaves on with Eckvoluten. The capitals of the front arches have a row of tall, strongly ribbed leaves. The original choir screen ( Canceles ) are now in the Archaeological Museum of Asturias ( Provincial Archaeological Museum of Asturias ) in Oviedo.

Frescoes

As in the Asturian churches of San Julián de los Prados and San Salvador de Valdediós frescoes have survived from Pre-Romanesque period in San Salvador de Priesca. You are in the nave, in the south aisle and in the apses. The central nave of a person sitting on a throne figure can be seen, the type of presentation - like the side view of the throne - is reminiscent of the murals in San Miguel de Lillo in Oviedo. On the barrel vaults and the walls of the apses geometric motifs such as four-, six -and eight corner shown or circles and ovals. Likewise, the letters are alpha and omega to recognize that probably hung on the arms of a painted cross.