The Museum of the Ways of the Gaudí Palace presents as the last piece of the year 2021 the Iron Cross of Foncebadón. This 2021, Jacobean Holy Year, the museum presents each month a work belonging to the Jacobean tradition within the Diocese of Astorga.
Since 1976, the Museo de los Caminos has kept the wrought iron cross in the Provisorato room, dedicated to the Santiago phenomenon in the Diocese. The cross is, without a doubt, one of the most emblematic and symbolic pieces of the permanent collection linked to the Camino de Santiago.
Of simple workmanship, and despite not having been subjected to a metallographic analysis to date, we can suggest that it is a work of the late fifteenth century or early sixteenth century. It does not stand out for any ornamental element except that its arms are finished in a flordellated form.
On a plain of the historic Monte Irago, in the port of Foncebadón, there is still, for the guidance of pilgrims and as a Christian symbol, its replica on a mast that has as its base a large mound that the centuries and the pilgrims have been thickening with the custom of throwing a stone from the beginning of their journey.
These mounds can be traced back to religious practices of the Asturians or to serve as signposts for roads, passes and crossroads. The “mounds of Mercury”, milestones of the god protector of the walkers raised in strategic places and when Christianity arrived, adapting them with the crowning of the cross, are a possible reference of their enigmatic origin. Or, simply, the boundary marker that delimited the preserve granted to the hermit Gaucelmo in the 12th century by Alfonso VI, whose income supported the charitable complex of Foncebadón, on the side of the route, to help pilgrims and walkers, as this rugged spot (the highest of the entire French Way, 1,500 meters) was especially feared for its harsh terrain and heavy snowfalls.
The Cruz de Ferro is exhibited in the Provisorato room, dedicated in the museum to iconographic pieces related to the Camino de Santiago. It can be visited, as well as the Gaudí Palace, every day from 10:30 am to 2:00 pm in the mornings and from 4:00 pm to 6:30 pm in the afternoons. The Gaudí Palace will be closed to the public on December 25 and January 1 and 6.
On the 25th of each month a different piece has been presented, all of them dedicated to the phenomenon of St. James in the Diocese of Astorga, coinciding, as it is, on July 25, the feast of St. James. On this occasion, we present the December piece a few days earlier, so as not to coincide with the feast of Christmas.