San juan day: Noche de San Juan | Discover Puerto Rico

San Juan Bezpera: The Basque Summer Solstice

When the sun goes down on June 23rd, many a bonfire is set ablaze to mark San Juan Eguna, the feast of St. John the Baptist, which marks the Basque Summer Solstice. In some towns the celebration is supplemented with more festivities and dances.

Basques became Christianized around the 8th century by most estimates. Before that they held their own indigenous beliefs although there is only scattered physical evidence of their pre-Christian faith. It seems certain, however, that their working assumption was that people could connect with the supernatural world to influence the natural world–and vice-a-versa. Thus they developed rituals (making the invisible, visible) to make this connection. In an earlier time, the Summer Solstice (the longest day of the year) must have seemed magical and it spawned a wide assortment of rituals throughout Europe. In the case of the Basques, we are not certain what those pre-Christian rituals were, but what has survived is their rough form with a new Christian context. Thus what we now know as San Juan Eguna (“the day of St. John the Baptist”) seem likely to have been adaptations of earlier rituals marking a day when it seemed as if the sun stood still in the sky.

In Western Christianity The Nativity of St John the Baptist, though not a widespread public holiday, is still kept in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran Churches. The night of June 23 is celebrated as the shortest of the year in the northern hemisphere and it is taken to symbolize the triumph of light over darkness. This day was fused with the commemoration of St. John the Baptist. Usually the day of a Saint’s death is celebrated as his or her feast day, but in this case, the birth of St. John the Baptist is marked (image at left). The main features of rituals revolving around this day are the fire and water (St. John the Baptist link) and certain plants.. Thus on this night in the Basque Country massive bonfires set ablaze. Legend has it that the ashes cure skin diseases and that one should jump the fire a minimum of three times to have a good year.

THE LONGEST DAY OF THE YEAR. There are two solstices each year, when the tilt of the earth’s axis is most inclined toward or away from the sun making for the longest (Summer) and shortest (Winter) interval of sunlight. The name is derived from the Latin sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still), because at the solstices, the sun appears to stand still and come to a stop before reversing direction. Our current (Gregorian) calendar marks the Summer Solstice right around June 21st, whereas the older Julian calendar marked the day on June 24th thus the discrepancy.

In the Basque Country, the arrival of San Juan Eguna is marked by parties, Patron festivals, neighborhood rituals and of course the omnipresent bonfires. There are many places in the Basque Country that celebrate this holiday in big and small ways: it can be as simple as a group of neighbors joining together to build a bonfire, or a whole town gets involved in the festival such as in Arrasate-Mondragón and Donostia-San Sebastián.

San Juan bonfire in Donostia-San Sebastian (Photo diariovasco.com)

A particular varied celebration is in Tolosa (Gipuzkoa) which offers a wide range of events with bullfights, processions, dances, the marching of militia and the performance of the traditional “Bordon-dantza.”

On the feast of St. John in Tolosa (Gipuzkoa) the day is marked with among other things processions through the streets of the town with “militia review” (above) and the traditional “Bordon-dantza” (below)

An ash tree is cut down and placed in the town square and each house is also decorated with branches. In addition, herbs are gathered on the morning of San Juan and kept throughout the year.

Meanwhile in Laguardia (Álava), a character named “Cachimorro” leads the parade in front of the dancers. When the cortege arrives at the church of San Juan, the flag of Laguardia (as a symbol for the community) is waved before the image of the Virgin Mary of Pilar (there are many variations on Mary in the Basque Country, e. g., Our Lady of Begona, Itziar, Arantzazu, etc.) This act of respect and homage is carried out by the Town Attorney, who first extends the flag on the floor of the church at the feet of the Virgin. He then takes it in his hand, and to the rhythm of a typical march composed centuries ago especially for this ceremony, he waves it, folds and unfolds it in skilled twists and turns, and ends by presenting it totally unfolded on the floor, kneeling, and praying a Salve Regina or a Credo. He then repeats this ceremony at the main altar, before the image of Saint John the Baptist.

The “Cachimorro” of Lagaurdia (Araba) from the procession on the feast of St. John.

Legend has it that the ashes cure skin diseases and that one should jump the fire a minimum of three times to have a good year. (Photo diariovasco.com)

There are many variations on the theme of the Summer Solstice in the Basque Country, and throughout Europe for that matter, though now the meanings have been transformed. Not to many today make this a day to pick mid-summer plants for their perceived miraculous healing powers, nor lighting bonfires to fend off evil spirits that roam freely when the sun reverses direction in the sky southwards again (bringing days of shorter sunlight that culminate with the Winter Solstice that coincides with Christmas–which is not a coincidence). For some it still marks a special day in their religious calendar. For others, it’s a great excuse to jump over flames! All told, the rituals of San Juan Eguna still serve as a way of bringing the community together.

San Juan San Juan bezpera gabien
abadik hasarratu zirien
ez eben besterik egiten
alkarri musturrek hausiten.

Sorginak erre
lapurrak galdu
oreganu santu
santu Sanjuan
artuk eta gariek
ondo bedeinketu.

–Joxe Mallea

Online sources: www.hiru.com; wikipedia.org; diariovasco.com

Night of San Juan June 23: origins, rituals and bonfires

Surely you have ever seen on Instagram or TikTok posts about a night party on the beach, during the summer, where there are a lot of people and they light bonfires… right?

It is about the celebration of parties de San Juan, in which the shortest night of the year welcomes the arrival of the summer solstice.

Superstitions, fire and rituals on the night of San Juan. This is how this magical night is.

When is the night of San Juan?

It is celebrated every year in the night of June 23, Eve of Saint John the Baptist on June 24.

¿Where is San Juan celebrated??

This holiday is celebrated in many parts of the world, both in the southern hemisphere and in the northern hemisphere. Also in Spain, of course. In fact, in our country the day of San Juan is a public holiday.

Among the traditions of the San Juan festivities, it is worth highlighting bonfires and jump over them or bathe in rivers, beaches, streams or fountains to purify themselves in order to free yourself from the bad and be able to embrace the good.

And so, start the summer on the right foot!

Traditions at San Juan and where to jump bonfires on the longest night of the year.

Night of San Juan history

To understand the traditions of Saint John, it is necessary to understand a little its history.

La history of the Night of San Juan began as a ritual of pagan origin associated with the arrival of the Summer Solstice, whose rite consisted of lighting a bonfire in honor of the sun to give it strength.

From June 21 the days they become shorter, until the winter solstice arrives and they thought that with the bonfires they would give more strength to the sun, so that it would shine all year round. 

Oh, if this were possible, you too would spend the winter lighting fires, right?

Well the Christianism decided to adopt this date, in honor of the day of the birth of Saint John the Baptist, one of the most important prophets of Christianism, whose father, to commemorate the birth of his son and announce it, had a fire lit. 

the crystalianism picked up this tradition and added it to the calendar, so every year to light bonfires!

For everything you have superstition and magic this night is considered the perfect night to perform spells to ward off evil spirits and attract good ones.

Now that you know the history of the night of San Juan and its meaning, do you dare to make these spells for the night of San Juan?

Tradition implies the presence of water and fire for the rituals of the night of San Juan.

What day is the Night of San Juan?

There are debates about when is the day of San Juan. The original date of the realization of this festival is associated with the summer solstice, since this happens, according to the calendar, between June 21 and 22.

The festival of San Juan is celebrated between the night of the 23rd and the early morning of the 24th in places like Valencia.

In some cities like Alicante, the festival of the night of San Juan, also known as the festival of San Juan, is celebrated between the night of June 24, the day of San Juan and the dawn of the 25th. The bonfires of Alicante are some of the most famous in Spain.

The most important thing is to celebrate the party and enjoy this magical night with friends or family, don’t you think?

Night of San Juan: Some simple rituals

The rituals of the festivity of San Juan on this magical night are as old as the people and with the passage of time some traditions are still alive.

Always with two objectives:

• Leave the bad behind. How? Burning it with fire!

• Welcome the good, purifying yourself with water, getting your feet wet!

The three main elements for rituals are fire, water and herbs. With these three elements, we will be able to carry out the main simple rituals of the night of San Juan.

Fire helps us burn the bad and leave behind bad luck and negative energies.

One of the most famous rituals is jumping over the San Juan bonfire to ward off evil spirits throughout the year. 

Do you dare to jump over the fire?

Water is another fundamental element: the water purifies. 

Tradition has it that you have to bathe and jump waves, in this way you will get health and happiness throughout the year.

(But if the water is very cold, you better get your feet wet, lest you get constipated.)

Herbs and medicinal plants such as rosemary, thyme, fennel, fern, common mallow, etc. that grow in the ground they are used to increase their beneficial and healing effects on health.

These herbs, together with sea water, can also be used to perform facial rituals on the night of San Juan and achieve more physical beauty.

What is done on the Night of San Juan?

We have talked about the main elements that are used in the simple rituals of the night of San Juan.

But now you want to know how the night of San Juan is celebrated in Spain and what the main rituals are, right?

So let’s go with them:

San Juan’s bonfires 

The jewel in the crown of the rituals for the night of San Juan. 

Light fires and jump over them It is one of the most important things to do on the night of San Juan. This will give us luck and protection throughout the year.

Valencia, Alicante and Galicia are three of the places where the San Juan festivities are most famous.

There is no established number on how many times you have to jump, but what is clear is that must be odd, so, if you jump once, you will already be driving away evil spirits and you will comply with the beliefs of the night of San Juan.

Specifically, in the Valencian Communityiana The ritual is to jump seven times over the bonfires. Only suitable for daring.

Instead, in Galicia the ritual of the bonfires on the night of San Juan is to jump nine times and also say out loud and with force, while you jump ¡Meigas out! (witches out).

Sometimes it is possible to jump the bonfires with music to make the experience more rhythmic and magical.

Rhythms and traditions at the same time?

In San Juan everything is possible!

The baths in the sea on the Night of San Juan and the jumps of the waves

Another widespread ritual of the festivity of San Juan on the coast is take a bath in the sea and jump the waves after 00:00 hours, while the moon is shining.   

Tradition says that it will serve to eliminate everything negative from your life and ensure health throughout the year.

The water during this magical night has healing and miraculous properties.

Well, we are going to take advantage, it is not going to be true.

Make wishes and burn objects on the Night of San Juan

Another important ritual is making wishes and writing phrases for the night of San Juan.

Tradition says you have to make wishes on the night of San Juan with phrases written on paper.

What is burned in the bonfire of San Juan?

You have to make sure that the paper with the wishes is burned in the bonfire, otherwise your wishes will not be fulfilled.

Objects that have been in our lives during the year and that we want to get rid of, such as old wooden furniture, are also thrown into the fire.

To the fire all the bad! 

Another ritual to get rid of all evil is to purify yourself with a laurel branch on the magical night of San Juan.

other traditions

In the Valencian CommunityianIn Catalonia, pyrotechnics and the launching of firecrackers gain importance.

En Alicante the Bonfires of San Juan are the official festivals of the city. To celebrate it there are mascletás, firework displays and gigantic figures like ninots: the city is llena of music and colors. 

In the province of Cadiz, rag dolls called Juanes are burned that represent a man and a woman, in addition to the bonfires on the beaches, the fireworks and the festivals.

In ForeignemadIn the ura there is also a tradition of making dolls out of paper, rags or straw and then burning them at the stake.

The festival of San Juan in Galicia also prepares the famous burned with their spell to which they attribute healing properties and serves to scare the witches (witches in Galician).

As you have been able to read, the rituals on the night of San Juan are very important in many parts of Spain.

If you are in Spain, you cannot leave without experiencing it.

complete rituals

Other people choose to perform complete rituals on the beach to eliminate the bad and attract the good:

• On the beach you have to be barefoot and in light-colored clothing, if it is white better.
• Bring candles to the beach of different colors with which to form a circle and light them, in the middle of the circle, light incense.
• Once you have the preparation, you write on a white paper what you want to get rid of, say it out loud and burn the paper with a white candle.

 And with this spell the bad things will be removed.

San Juan’s bonfires 

The night of San Juan in Alicante is a very representative festival with a lot of international tourist interest.

These parties are celebrated with music, gunpowder and fire. Alicante bonfires are impressive.

The origin of the festival is burning of unusable objects on the summer solstice.

The party begins on June 20 and lasts until June 29. In the days leading up to Midsummer’s Eve, in the streets are planted papier-mâché monuments with satirical images called Fire pit (bonfire)

It is the most important element of the festival: they are monuments made of wood, cardboard and cork that are located in different parts of the city.

Each monument has a different theme where his dolls are represented in critical situations or satires.

There are two types of Fire pit (bonfire). The children’s ones have a colorful, aesthetic and a children’s theme very different from the adult bonfires.

These monuments are burned on June 24 with the famous night of the cream, the highlight of these parties.

Bonfires burn all over town and firefighters, to help people endure the heat, perform the popular banya (wet) throwing water at the attendees.

During the festivities there are booths where you can taste the brevas y the cokes (a kind of empanada of tuna, onion and pine nuts) and the popular verbenas are held.

You already know that in Spain there is no shortage of delicious food at parties.

And what we like a party to the Spaniards!

It also proceeds to the floral offering to the patron saint of the city, la Virgin of Remedy, on June 21 and 22.

Every day at two in the afternoon they run pyrotechnic shows, the famous mascletás.

(Yes, yes, we know that all this reminds you of the Fallas, and with good reason).

Of course, if you are going to enjoy one, we recommend that you bring plugs to protect your ears, since the noise caused by gunpowder and rockets is deafening. 

Once past the the perfect from day 24 Between June 25 and 29, to end the San Juan festivities, the fireworks contest is held on the Postiguet beach and in the old town you can enjoy its medieval market.

Now you know what to do on the night of San Juan, where to celebrate it and why it is of such great tourist interest.

With everything that we have told you, we will surely have set your teeth long and you really want to come and enjoy these holidays.

Do you want to discover them in person? Alicante is less than 2 hours from Valencia. 

Night of San Juan Valencia

La Saint John’s night in Valencia It is another magical night and if you are in Valencia you cannot miss it.

It is celebrated between the night of June 23 and 24 are dealt with first, followed by bonfires on the beaches where people gather to jump the bonfire, the waves of the sea and do the rest of the rituals of the night of San Juan.

The bonfires of San Juan in Valencia and the baths can be held in the Malvarrosa and Cabanyal beaches, as the town hall gives permission that day.

In addition, the town hall provides you with free firewood to make the bonfires.

What more could you want!

For you to fully enjoy the magic of the night of San Juan in Valencia We are going to give you a series of tips.

• If you jump the bonfire, do it with caution, do not go to take a memory in the form of whatemadpainful ure.
• If you bathe, don’t do it alone and don’t go too far into the sea, it’s not necessary. You can just get your feet wet and it has the same effect.
• You can be on the beach with the bonfires until four in the morning, enough party time. Be careful because later they can be sanctioned.

You already know that if in addition to coming to Valencia to enjoy the San Juan festivities, you also want to do a Spanish course in summer to learn or improve your Spanish, in Hispania, escuela de español We are waiting with open arms

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  Aragonese way. Day five: Jaca – San Juan de la Peña

  Aragonese way. May 2017 Table of contents

  Monasterio San Juan de la Peña is located near Jaca and we really wanted to go there.

  I learned about the rock monastery ( peña – in Spanish rock ) when I read about the Aragonese way. I looked at the photos and realized that you definitely need to go there or go. This is the most revered monastery in Aragon. It is surrounded by legends, riddles and mysteries. Built, or even cut into the rock in the 10th century, a relic known as the Holy Grail was kept here until the 14th century. The monastery was the center of the spiritual life of the Kingdom of Aragon and here, in the Royal Pantheon ( Panteón Real ) the monarchs Ramiro I, Pedro I, Sancho I are buried. The cloister consists of two parts: the Old Monastery ( Monasterio Viejo ) and the New Monastery ( Monasterio Nuevo ). And there is also a very beautiful cloister with amazing stone carvings of the 12th century – “the pearl of the Romanesque style”. Honestly, for the sake of one cloister and capitals, you can go to this monastery.

  It is located a little away from the classic Aragonese way, so I thought for a long time how best to get there. From Khaki to the monastery about 20 km through the mountains. Everything is fine, but you can only spend the night upstairs in an expensive 4-star hotel in the New Monastery. 7 km below the monastery is the small town of Santa Cruz de la Seros. But there is also no affordable housing. The nearest albergue is in Santa Silia, it’s even further away. But there was a convenient option – a bus to the monastery. There is almost no information about him anywhere, I don’t know why. I accidentally found out about the bus on the English-language pilgrim forum. The tourism office in Jaca confirmed this information. Hooray!

  How to get there

  I’ll tell you more about the bus to the monastery of San Juan de la Peña – perhaps this information will be of interest not only to potential pilgrims. The minibus departs from Khaki at 09-25 and returns at 19-00. The cost is 15 euros. The price includes round-trip transportation and a full entrance ticket (visiting the New and Old Monastery + museum + visiting the church in Santa Cruz de la Seros). For comparison: a general ticket for pilgrims costs 10 EUR, for visiting only the Old Monastery – 7 EUR. So the fare seems reasonable.
  Using this bus, you can see the monastery in one day, go to the museum, walk along the hiking trails, go to the viewing platforms, go down to Santa Cruz de la Seros and come back. We were going to drive only to the monastery, see it and then walk to Arres.
  In Jaque, the bus stops on the street next to the bus station (see panorama). The ticket is bought on the bus.

  In the morning we didn’t get up very early – only French grandmothers, who came late yesterday evening, got up later than us. We had a leisurely breakfast, walked a little around the city and came to the bus station.

  We were sure that some of the pilgrims would use this bus, but no, there was no one else besides us. In total, there were 5 passengers on the bus with us, and one of them sold us tickets. In Santa Cruz de la Seros, this man went out – as it turned out later, he works there in the museum at the Cathedral of Santa Cruz. Two women boarded a bus in Santa Cruz. We understood that this bus, most likely, is not for pilgrims, as we assumed, but for museum employees – it takes them to their place of work in the morning and takes them back in the evening. But any tourist, if desired, can use it.

  To go for about half an hour, and a little before 10 o’clock, almost to the opening of the museum, the bus drove up to the New Monastery, to the ticket office. We showed the bus ticket at the museum ticket office and got a ticket to the museums. We asked the bus driver if he knew if there was something to get to Santa Cruz de la Seros (somewhere there was unconfirmed information that there should be a shuttle). The driver replied that nothing goes there, but he can take us to the Old Monastery. We agreed. It’s not that it’s very far away – only 2 km along a very simple and pleasant road, under other conditions we would be happy to walk. But now we had very little time and we took advantage of his offer.

  View of the New Monastery

  Near the Old Monastery we met familiar pilgrim faces, but did not immediately remember where we saw them. Then we realized that they were with us in the Albergue in Sarrance. For some reason, we decided that they were Dutch, but they turned out to be Germans, they came from Cologne (in several steps), one of them knows a little Russian. They spent the night in a hotel in a monastery. Of course, if possible, it is better to spend the night there, it is very convenient. In the evening, you can see the monastery, take a walk, walk to the mirador, and set off early in the morning. Four Germans spent the night in the monastery, but they examined the Old Monastery together with us in the morning.

  Monastery of San Juan de la Peña

  The history of this monastery is long and full of legends and mysteries. I did not know what better to tell about the monastery. I tried to get close to this topic from different angles and I did not like everything. It was not clear where historically accurate information ends and legends begin. So I’ll tell you a story. You can read it in Spanish here: La Leyenda de San Juan de la Peña.

  Legend of the Monastery of San Juan de la Peña

  A long time ago, at the end of the 7th century, there lived a noble Christian Don Juan (Juan de Atarés) in Atares. One fine day, for no reason, he decided to give up his wealth and, changing the outfit of a knight for the modest attire of a penitent sinner, left his palace and retired to a hard-to-reach cave in the mountains near Khaki. There he lived in silence and solitude and prayed for hours in front of a crucifix carved from wood.
  Once a hermit was surprised to see a dressed-up gentleman entering a cave, who addressed him in a friendly manner:
  – Poor don Juan! Throw off these rags, dress as before in purple and gold, follow me and I will show you what fate awaits you.
  It was Lucifer himself. He took the hermit by the hand and led him out of the cave. At that moment, there was a roar, as in an earthquake, the rocks began to move, change shape and turn into columns, capitals, arches, vaults, walls and floors, creating a magnificent palace. Satan said to don Juan:
  “Now you see what I can do. From this moment on, renounce God, who forces you to wear the clothes of a beggar.
  Atares began to recite the Lord’s Prayer and fell to the floor unconscious. Lucifer disappeared, and when Juan de Atares woke up, he found an Angel in the cave. And again he heard a terrible roar, the magnificent palace collapsed and the fragments fell to the bottom of a deep abyss. Then the Angel said:
  – You see what is left of the power of the enemy of God, who came to tempt you. Now go down into the valley, go to Mount Uruel, there you will see another large cave, in which, by the will of God, the altar of St. John the Baptist (San Juan Bautista) was erected, he will not leave you.
  At the same moment the Angel disappeared. Shocked, Atares descended, where he actually found a huge cave that could hold 500 people. Don Juan molded an image of St. John the Baptist and placed it in a makeshift altar. In this cave he spent the rest of his life in prayer. When he felt that he was dying, he carved an inscription on a stone:
  “I, Juan, the first hermit who settled in this place, in the name of love for God, to the best of my ability, built a chapel to the glory of John the Baptist and here I will find peace.”
  Years passed. Not far from the place where don Juan left his epitaph, noble nobles – a father and his two sons named Felix and Voto – built a fortress.
  One autumn day, at the very beginning of the 8th century, Voto went hunting in the mountains on horseback. Seeing a deer, he galloped after it. Trying to escape from the hunter, the deer broke and fell into the abyss. The horse under the hunter was hot and unbridled, and Voto, believing that he would share the fate of the red deer, offered up a prayer to John the Baptist. Immediately the horse stopped abruptly, miraculously keeping its hind legs on the edge of the abyss. The hunter dismounted, fell to his knees and thanked God for the miraculous rescue. After that, he wanted to see the place of the fall of the deer, went down the steep slope over the stones through the dense thickets of brambles and reached the threshold of the cave. He entered it and with great surprise saw the corpse of a hermit lying with his head on a stone, on which the inscription cited earlier was found.
  Noble Voto offered a prayer, buried the body, left the cave, mounted his horse and returned to the mountains, where his brother Felix was impatiently waiting for him. After telling him everything that happened, he announced his decision to give his rich fortune to the poor and retire to the cave of Atares to devote his life to prayer and repentance. His decision touched his brother Felix, and he said he would go with him. And they both settled in a cave in Mount Uruel and lived there away from the world and people. A few years later they were joined by two other hermits from Zaragoza named Benedict (Benito) and Marcelo.
  One fine day, between 714 and 724, 300 Christians appeared in the cave, seeking protection and shelter from the four hermits Voto, Felix, Benedict and Marcelo – they fled, fleeing from a new Muslim invasion. The refugees spent several days in humility, prayer and repentance, praying for divine help, and then, on the advice of the hermits, they decided to deal with the enemies on their own and establish a monarchy. In a huge cave, the first king of Sobrarbe was proclaimed – Don Garcia Jimenez, owner of the lands of Amezcoa and Abárzuza. They made an army under the leadership of Don Garcia and retook the city of Ainsa, which was proclaimed the capital of the new kingdom.
  In 732, García Ximénez ordered the construction of a church in the cave and founded the monastery of San Benito.

  This is where the legend ends, the history of the kingdom of Sobrarbe, Garcia Jimenez and the Reconquista can be told for a long time, but we, having plunged into the world of legends, will return to the monastery.

  Fragments of frescoes

  Monastic bedroom

  In the Old Monastery, the most interesting thing for me was not the royal pantheon, not a copy of the Grail (I only glanced at it, it’s clear that I don’t take these things seriously), not the Mozarab chapel ( Mozarabs, literally “turned into an Arab”, – Christians who lived in Muslim territories ) – were most interested in the cloister of the rock temple. This is the pearl of a monastery carved into the mountain, and the capitals are considered the best architectural creation of the Romanesque period in Spain. Two bays of the cloister gallery have been completely preserved. The carving was done by an anonymous master, known as the maestro from San Juan de la Peña, or he was also called the maestro from Aguero. The capitals are a combination of religious scenes and fantastic animals framed by geometric and floral motifs.

  The courtyard is open on one side (see above). Due to the fact that there is no outer wall, it is quite light there, and you can see everything perfectly. You can look at beautiful images for a long time. And guess their meaning.

  Here (below) about the fall of Adam. Pay attention – the upper part of the figure of Eve to the left of Adam is neatly chipped.

  Resurrection of Lazarus

  And this is The Last Supper. Judas reaches for the fish, the symbol of the one he betrays.

  In the photo above, notice the checkerboard pattern on the arcades. This is a Hakean (or Haketan) square (chess) pattern. In Spanish ajedrezado (Taqueado) jaqués. There are also other names for it. It is believed that this pattern was first used in the cathedral in Haka, hence the name “Hakean” or “Haketan”.

  Here he is in the cathedral in Jaca:

  This pattern has become widespread in Spain thanks to the Way of Saint James. For two centuries – XI and XII – the chess pattern was used in the construction of more than 460 religious buildings. (For comparison, in France it can be seen on 76 churches, much less than in Italy – 21, in the UK there are only 2 such examples.) We will meet him again today a little later.

  Let’s also pay attention to the location of the columns – one by one, two or four. They say that they are not located randomly, but set the rhythm of Gregorian singing.