For all lovers of the Camino de Santiago, or who plan to do so, the San Antón Monastery It is a mandatory stop when you opt for the French route. Some ruins that are worth visiting and that have a great history behind them; and those that are reached from Hontanas; the next stop is in Castrojeriz.
El San Anton Monastery is located in the depopulated from San Antón, an area that was part of the municipality of Castrojeriz, in the province of Burgos, Castilla y León. And it was founded in the 1146th century (year XNUMX), by Alfonso VII it was known as part xenodoquio of San Antonio Abad. Although, it should be said that the current ruins are from the XNUMXth century.
As we said, behind this architectural wonder, even though it is in ruins, there is a great story, and that is that, in the XNUMXth century, the order of the Knights of the Hospital of San Antonio was founded, which opened different hospitals throughout the the Camino de Santiago. Some centers that treated some contagious diseases, but above all the one known as Fuego de San Antón or ergotism, and cured pilgrims during their pilgrimage to Santiago. And this Monastery was one of them...
In this way, the order of San Anton It gained great fame as a miracle worker since the pilgrims healed or improved upon reaching Compostela...
Although today only the arch that formed the tunnel (where pilgrims entered and exited) remains standing, it has become a mandatory stop for all walkers who opt for the tunnel. French Way…
Some curiosities about the Monastery of San Antón
As el Monastery It was for years under royal protection, in it you could see some royal shields both on the doorway of the church and on the keystones of the vaults.
In addition, the hospital was of great importance in its day, since it was the headquarters of the "General Command of the Order of San Antonio of the different kingdoms of the Crown of Castile and Portugal, with more than twenty dependent commands (houses-monasteries -hospitals). As we read on Wikipedia. These monks performed various ceremonies to bless some objects such as the cross called Tau or Thau, Saint Anthony's bread, or holy wine, a remedy for fire. Many faithful attended these ceremonies.
Thus, today we can see the ruins of the Monastery, the head of the church... and cross the road under the arch that is still standing. In this video that we leave you, you can see a 3D Reconstruction of the Monastery, made by José Antonio Peñas Artero for the Muy Interesante magazine.
