SAN MIGUEL DE TARRASA

Previous notes
- The complete Episcopal Ensemble of Tarrasa was declared National Monument in 1931and Artistic and Historical World Heritage site in 1985.
- Formed by three buildings, cathedral, baptistry and parochial church, San Miguel was the baptistry located between the two churches.
- It has gone under several restoration processes along the 20th century and from the year 2000 through 2008 a complete Direc tor Plan of the Monumental Emsemble that included study, restoration and revaluation.
Description
San Miguel, located in the middle of the episcopal ensemble, between Santa María and San Pedro, is the best

From the outside, with an interesting effect of volumes, it appears as a set of roofs, two, three and four pitched, at different levels that makes us think that we are in front of a much more complex building than the structures of three nave basilical plans and an apse that initially constituted Santa María and San

The shape of its plan that, as we have mentioned, is a Greek cross inlaid in a square and, with an unattached apse oriented to the east, as in the other churches of Terrassa, clearly links with the set of cruciform Visigothic churches that originated the importation of the model of the mausoleum of Gala Placidia in Rávena for the building of San Fructuoso de Montelios, that, from our point of view, was followed in churches like Santa Comba de Bande, San Pedro de la Mata or Santa María de Melque and that would continue in Carolingian constructions like Geminy-des-Prés and even in Santa María de Lebeña, already in Mozarabic times, and in the mosque of El Cristo de La Luz in Toledo, completed in 999.
However, San Miguel is the only one among them that maintains the arches’ structure upon columns, supporting the central vault that we see in Montelios, altough the addition of the compartments in the angles improved the stability of the ensemble. In this case, instead of the three arches on each side of the square that we see in San Fructuoso,


A special mention deserves its apse to which access is gained by a continuous horse shoe shaped arch. It is placed in the eastern side, forming an external compartment to the square with inner horse shoe shape, very similar to the one in santa María. However, externally it is octogonal, something without any precedents in the architecture of that period in Spain, except for the remains of a Visigothic church discovered in the cloister of the monastery of San Cugat del Vallés, of the

The building had three doors, one at each side except in the apse. Today only the one at the southern side is left, much modified and possibly it let the direct access to the northern nave of Santa María.
Another interesting matter is the existence of a martyrial crypt located beneath the apse, to which access is gained by staircases at the southern side of its interior. It has an aisle, parallel to the eastern wall, and a perpendicular chevet, with a plan formed by three horse shoe shaped lobes,

In the western facade, in an area with a different building style, of worse quality, we find a big very pronounced horse shoe window, clearly Mozarabic, a proof of a first partial reconstruction around the 10th century, previous to the Romanesque one, but also showing that the original ensemble is prior to the Mozarabic period.
With regard to the decoration, besides the existent painting in the apse, there are only left in the capitals of the inner square, schematized Corynthian and little homogeneous, probably reutilized from the Roman period, as well as the columns that are of different thickness. They support the set of arches that on their turn support the walls of the central vault.
Conclusions
In favour of the Visigothic thesis:
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The zenith of the bishopry of Egara is the most reasonable moment to build an important episcopal ensemble.
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The basilical structure of three naves and one apse, and the shape of the apses’ plan, in Santa María and San Pedro, a very usual design in the Early Christian period and that continues in the Visigothic period, but practically disappears since the 8yh century.
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The cruciform plan of San Miguel, with a central vault based on arches upon columns and capitals, with a clear precedent in Sa
n Fructuoso de Montelios, that generates a much lighter structure than what was usual in Carolingian art.
In favour of the Carolingian thesis:
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The external bond of the three churches is utilized in the Carolingian period and has not been found in any constructions of the Visigothic period that has reached these days.
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The round arches in the ensemble, basically those that support the vault of San Miguel.
Other interesting information
Address: Plaza del Recto Homs, s/n, 08222 Terrassa. GPS Coordinates: 41º 34′ 0,70″N 2º 1′ 6,67″E.
Information telephone: 93 783 37 02
Visiting hours: From Tuesdays through Saturdays: Mornings from 10 to 13:30 hours. Afternoons from 16 to 19 hours. Mondays and holidays closed. Admission free.
Bibliography
Historia de España de Menéndez Pidal: Tomo III
SUMMA ARTIS: Tomo VIII
L’Art Préroman Hispanique: ZODIAQUE
Ars Hispanie: Tomo II
Los
Templos Visigótico-Románicos de Tarrasa: F. Torrella Niubó
Portals
Conjunto monumental de las iglesias de San Pedro de Tarrasa
Pla Director del Conjunt Monumental de les Esglésies de Sant Pere
de Terrassa