San Juan Bautista de Corias

San Juan Bautista de Corias (Asturian: San Xuan Bautista de Courias) is a former Benedictine monastery in Corias on the right bank of the Narcea dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. It was founded in 1032 on his own land by Count Piñolo Jiménez (Piniolo) and his wife Aldonza Muñoz, wealthy Leonese aristocrats. Originally constructed in the Romanesque style, it was reconstructed in the Neoclassical style after a fire destroyed all but the chapel in 1773. Today it is informally known as "the Asturian Escorial" (el Escorial Asturiano).

The first abbot was Arias Cromaz, a relative of Piniolo and thus also of Oveco, Bishop of Oviedo from 913 to circa 960. After nineteen years as abbot, Arias was elected to the diocese of Oviedo. The monastery attained its maximal splendour in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, with properties stretched across the western Asturias and into the neighbouring province of León. The monastery received diverse modifications and additions over the centuries, but after the fire of 1773 the entire complex had to be rebuilt. The project was overseen by Miguel Ferro, using a rectangular layout with two courtyards and the chapel located in a wing.

Today it is a complex of structures classified as a Bien de Interés Cultural and protected by the Spanish government. It houses a parador and an interpretation centre for a natural park. ^[1]

References

1. ^ Casa del Parque Natural de las Fuentes del Narcea, Degaña e Ibias

Primary sources

• El Libro Registro de Corias, 2 vols., ed. A. C. Floriano Cumbreño. Oviedo: 1950.

Bibliography

• María Elida García García. San Juan Bautista de Corias: historia de un señorío monástico asturiano (siglos X–XV). Oviedo: Universidad de Oviedo, 1980.

Coordinates: 41°11′41″N 6°32′37″W / 41.19472°N 6.54361°W / 41.19472; -6.54361