Novelúa brings together several points of interest for a cultural trip: San Cristovo de Novelúa, a Romanesque fortified church; the site of an ancient Castro; stately estates; and a personal story about making parts for hórreos. Together, these themes take you from medieval architecture through later alterations to a post-war journey of learning a craft. If you are looking for holiday rentals in Novelúa, you can use these highlights to define the purpose of your stay more precisely.
San Cristovo: church architecture and Castro
San Cristovo de Novelúa is a fortified church dating from the 12th and 13th centuries. It was altered in the 17th and 18th centuries, while its Romanesque fabric has been fully preserved. Its architectural history thus brings together Romanesque forms and changes from two later centuries. The church therefore offers more than a single date: its story encompasses both its medieval origins and later alterations.
At the main portal, three archivolts frame the splayed round arch. There are also columns in three orders and capitals with different designs. Decorated mochetas enclose the framed tympanum. This sequence makes the portal’s structure tangible: the arch, columns and tympanum are distinct elements of a unified architectural composition.
San Cristovo stands on the site of an ancient Castro. Dense oak growth covers the area within the Castro’s enclosing walls. The church and Castro thus bring together two historical layers in the same place; the oak growth is specifically within the walls. An official provincial itinerary dated 30 December 2021 included a visit to the church on Route 37 (Monterroso–Antas de Ulla).
Manor houses and their different scales
The three inhabited manor houses in Novelúa include Casa Grande, A de Batán and Pazo de Mourente. Pazo de Fontearcada is also in Novelúa and is one of the representative pazo estates of Monterroso. These are distinct categories: the three manor houses form an inhabited group, while Fontearcada is distinguished by its representative status among Monterroso’s pazo estates.
Casa Grande is privately owned. Its chapel contains a coat of arms carved from walnut, serving as the keystone of the wooden coffered ceiling. This detail shifts the focus from the manor house as a whole to the design of a single architectural feature: the ceiling, keystone and carved coat of arms are connected here. The history of the estates can therefore also be explored through architectural details, not just their names and classification.
A local story about making hórreos
A personal story of craftsmanship adds to the buildings. In the post-war period, José Vázquez Méndez of Tarrío de Novelúa in Monterroso learned from his father how to make cabeceiras for hórreos. Cabeceiras were considered the most affordable way for a family to own a hórreo. An account published in 2018 records a specific learning journey within a family and focuses on the making of a particular component.
Unlike the fortified church and manor houses, this story is about a practical skill and how a family could acquire a hórreo. This perspective complements the representative estates with an economic and craft-based point of view. For choosing what to see on your trip, it offers a clear contrast: from the building phases and portal forms at San Cristovo, through the differing classifications of the manor houses, to a personal story about a practical craft solution.
Discover more destinations: A Pobra do Brollón, A Lobagueira, Pena, Chantada, Sarria, Quiroga, Cervo, Valverde
For the broader travel overview: Lugo.
