Natural Heritage of Valencia and Valencian Community: A Visit to "Les Agulles de Santa Agueda", Benicasim and castellon, Official Tourist guided Visits.

This summer we had the opportunity to guide a mountain group to "Agulles of St. Agatha" in the natural park of Desierto de las Palmas.

 The amazing surprise come early for everybody because of its micro-reserve of Mediterranean flora from one side, to the other for the most remarkable religious past about the presence of the order of Carmel since ancient times with poetical names. As the word "desert" which alludes to the soul in mystical language struggling to meet God in solitary places for praying, known as hermitages in the mountain. And the last reason because of the mixture of pink and grey stones that gives to it an special colour during the dawn break and sunset with splendid overviews of the Mediterranean Sea from this natural Platform

Bahía de Benicassim desde el Bartolo

The name of the highest peak, "bartolo" (729mt) owes its name to the brother Bartolomé. One of the most famous monks who lived here, of which it is said he used to enjoy during springtime the landscape at the top and have a nap or siesta.The second important formation are Santa Águeda needles"with its pinkish and reddish forms that give a particular ghost charm by its presence next to the intense blue of the sea and the soft green of the palms and Mediterranean plants. This pink-colour formation comes from the Triassic, about 250 million years ago, as a conglomerate of Red stones (rodeno) resting on grey slates. Its pyramid shapes, pointed cusps and angled slopes formed by Triassic red and pink sandstones makes them so striking and responsible for its name of Agulles (spires).

 

Pink finger-like agulles

Organ-tube agulles

The name Santa Agueda was not given by a geologist but by an imaginative carmelite order religious man who lived once in the area. Santa Águeda was a martyr of Catania, in Sicily, in the first centuries of Christianity, in the mountains of Sicily. He was born in Palermo towards 230aD, a fervent Christian with whom he felt in love Quintian, Governor of Sicily. Agueda fled to Catania but Quintilian captured her and applied the torment in her body. Among the instruments needles were used to destroy the breast of the poor Virgin. San Peter appeared in her cell in jail to heal her. But she finally died February 5h of the year 251. According to some witness Etna volcano erupted one year later at the same day. In the vicinity of les Agulles is located an Hermitage in honour of two feminine saints, the hermitage of Les Santes,dedicated to Santa Lucia and Santa Agatha,restored in 1617 by the bishop of Cabanes, a nearly town.. 

Hermitage of Les Santes

 It was a priest of Cabanes, who recommended the Carmelite order to found in the desert of las Palmas around 1698. Saint Lucia is the patroness of a healthy sight and Agatha, a patroness and advocate of women. Some festivals area dedicated to St. Agatha in the Iberian Peninsula confirming her role as defender against any abuse concerning gender equality, as in Castile where ladies are given the batons for a day.

We finish this blog talking about the origins of such curiosity name as Agulles of Santa Agueda Spires of Saint Agatha). Twin chest-shaped mountains are common in the Iberian Peninsula. In this case, should it be a religious member who baptized them as dedicated mountains to Saint Agatha to relate them to the nearby Hermitage. And the form of "needles" of course remind us the instruments of torment with which Sicilian executioners wanted to deprive the santa of her feminity. If we look from the agulles to the Bartolo's mountain we can observe that the peak recalls as the head of the Virgin while the needles should look like a body lying down towards the calmed waters of the Mediterranean sea while receiving her martyrdom.    

The big spire

Smaller spire formations

The Monte Bartolo, 200 meters high, gives us amazing views around the 180 km of the Valencian Gulf from the river Ebro mouth at north mouth to the Montgo mountain at Javea to the south . In front of us the silhouette of Columbretes Islands. Behind us the first Hermitage ruins and the current Carmelite convent. A joy for the senses. A real trip to cultural Valencia and Castellon.

Roman arch at Via Augusta

Jose Vicente Niclos

Tourist Official Guide, Pt. Of Apit

Bibliogrhapy: 

Vicente Sos Babyat, El valle de Miravet y “Les Agulles de Santa Agueda” (sep. Del Boletín de la Sociedad Castellonense de Cultura t. xxxv e. octubre -Diciembre 1959.

Juan Emilio Prades,  Eremitorio de les Santes, Cabanes: Costumbres y paisajes Bel

Valencian Cultural Heritage: Borgia's family and a Chapel in valencian Cathedral

During the month of July a group of Official Tourist Guide of Valencia and valencian Community (Apit) had the opportunity to attend a guided tour of the Chapel of San Pedro recently restored, at the cathedral of Valencia,. The guided tour was led by D. Jaime Sancho, Canon and responsible of the artistic heritage of the cathedral.

D. Jaime stressed the importance of visiting this chapel from next September out  as an added element of value of the Cathedral. The oldest part of it is the cast iron and golden grate done in the second half of the fifteenth century, namely the year 1467 by Juan Pons, with the dedication to the Supreme Shepherd of the Church, Peter, Pastor Ovium, Princeps Apostolorum (You are the shepherd of the sheep, the Prince of the Apostles).

Iron Grate, you are the Sepherd

The most valuable items were the frescoes of Antonio Palomino (late seventeenth century) depicting scenes from the life of the Apostle Peter. The paintings of the wall facing the entrance closed other times the doors of the Renaissance organ and were painted by Nicholas Falco early sixteenth century artist, representing scenes from the life of virgin Mary.

Saint Peter's Martyrdom

Former Renaissance Organ Paintings

The stucco decoration in the upper band had a symbolic meaning referring to the spiritual fruitfulness of the soul by means of horns of abundance, poppies and lilies. The canon Sivera Sanchis, before the civil war, described this part as a hemispherical dome topped with flashlight. The whole chapel suffered major damage during the spanish civil war with a devastating fire effect (1936). Now beautifully restored it is illuminated by a Murano lamp with a superb lighting.

Chapel as a Museum during Franco's Period (1940)

Illuminated Dome Perspective

The chapel can be visited and will  also function as a conference center for followers of ecclesiastical art and culture ·

The title of Sixtine chapel of the Cathedral, which gave some past historians seems a little exagerated, but interesting. It was at that time when Rodrigo de Borgia, Bishop of Valencia was responsible for its foundation. The Valencian chapel program was dedicated to the figure of St. Peter perhaps anticipating that one day the founder himself woulb be elevated to the chair of St. Peter.

The first occupant of the Chair of Peter born in Valencia was Alfonso de Borja as Calixtus III, who soon appointed his nephew as Bishop of Valencia, Cardinal Deacon, dean of the College of Cardinals and vice-chancellor of the Church Romana. Rodrigo studiedt at the University of Bologna, where he got a doctorate in law on August 1456

Rodrigo de Borja (Alexander VI)

After beeing appointed bishop of Valencia he took possession of the diocese on July 1458. He returned to Valencia as apostolic legate in 1471. The splendor of his coming around 1457 is described at the novelized biography by Joan Francesc Mira around 1472:

"In the middle of June after a month of traveling by sea we saw the shore of Valencia, twenty-three years after, whence a young law student embarked for Rome. Called by an old uncle, like so many other teenagers who leave their country in search of fortune by means of weapons or church positions, but very few got back, as I was now returning, full of fortune. I waited for two or three days at the Monastery of “El Puig” to order my entourage and complete my retinue and a morning full of light the city welcomed me with more success than a real king, an entry with an entourage larger than that of an ancient monarch, invested with such authority as a Roman pontiff. Now the victory was for me, I was the prince arrived at that door with an entourage that this “Serranos “ Gate had never contemplated in Valencia ... Before me were hundred men well dressed and my white horse was the only sign of sovereign dignity: the way to the Seo (Cathedral) is short but it took very long because of the entire population of Valencia on our way, wishing to contemplate that great son of the noble house, the Cardinal Borja who came from Rome with the splendor of a pope, the air was full of petals and flowers as a cloud that well-dressed women from balconies and windows launched on mi way"(JF.Mira, p. 148ss).

Jose Vicente Niclos

Bibliography:

 Joan F. Mira, Borja Papa, Valencia, 2007

Valencia, Revista de la Catedral, No. 6, 2011.

Thank you for choosing Valencia. Pay a visit to our Land.

 Itineris Club

Apit