Celanova is a town and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

located in the province of Ourense, Galicia, Northern

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. Situated near the border with

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, the municipality is bordered by

Ramirás Ramirás is a municipality in Ourense in the Galicia region of north-west Spain. It lies towards the south-west of the province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the anci ...

Cartelle Cartelle is a municipality in Ourense (province) in the Galicia region of north-west Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' ...

A Merca A Merca is a municipality in Ourense in the Galicia region of north-west Spain. It is located in the western central part of the province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives fro ...

A Bola ''A Bola'' (; en, literally "The Ball", in this context "The Game of Football") is a Portuguese sports newspaper published in Lisbon. History and profile ''A Bola'' was founded in 1945 by Cândido de Oliveira and Ribeiro dos Reis, and was ...

Verea Verea is a municipality in Ourense (province) in the Galicia region of north-west Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (La ...

and

Quintela de Leirado Quintela de Leirado is a municipality in Ourense (province) in the Galicia region of north-west Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Pl ...

The Arnoia river crosses the southern limits of the township. The municipality has 6,020 inhabitants. The provincial capital

Ourense Ourense (; es, Orense ) is a city and capital of the province of Ourense, located in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, northwestern Spain. It is on the Camino Sanabrés path of the Way of St ...

is located 23 km away on

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

N-540 (Ourense to Portugal via Lindoso). The Monastery of San Salvador de Celanova is the most important building in a well-preserved historical center. It was founded by

St. Rudesind Saint Rudesind ( gl, San Rosendo, Rudesindo; pt, São Rosendo lat, Rudesindus) (November 26, 907 – March 1, 977) was a Galician people, Galician bishop and abbot. He was also a regional administrator and military leader under his kinsmen, the ...

(San Rosendo) in 936. The nave is considered the most perfect Galician

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

church. In the

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...

of the monastery can be found the

pre-Romanesque Pre-Romanesque art and architecture is the period in European art from either the emergence of the Merovingian kingdom in about 500 AD or from the Carolingian Renaissance in the late 8th century, to the beginning of the 11th century Romanesqu ...

chapel of San Miguel, one of the oldest in Spain. The town preserves ancient streets, with several houses that display coats of arms. One of these

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...

s was the birthplace of the great poet of the Galician Rexurdimento (Rebirth),

Manuel Curros Enríquez Manuel Curros Enríquez (September 15, 1851 - February 7, 1908) was a Galician writer and journalist in the Galician language, and is considered to be one of the leading figures of Galician culture and identity. Early life Manuel Curros Enrí ...

. Nearby can be found the

castro Castro is a Romance language word that originally derived from Latin ''castrum'', a pre-Roman military camp or fortification (cf: Greek: ''kastron''; Proto-Celtic:''*Kassrik;'' br, kaer, *kastro). The English-language equivalent is '' chester''. ...

(pre-Roman citadel) of Castromao. The visitor can still see the circular

dwelling In law, a dwelling (also known as a residence or an abode) is a self-contained unit of accommodation used by one or more households as a home - such as a house, apartment, mobile home, houseboat, vehicle, or other "substantial" structure. The ...

s and defensive walls built by the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

. A few kilometres from the town lies the village of Vilanova dos Infantes with a medieval tower from the 14th century. It belonged to the Counts of Monterrey. Close to this perfectly restored village is the sanctuary of La Virgen del Cristal, in which can be seen a strange transparent stone, perhaps a

meteorite A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or Natural satellite, moon. When the ...

, containing what some believe to be the image of the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Celanova is twinned with: *

Guadix Guadix (; Local pronunciation: aˈðih is a city and municipality in southern Spain, in the province of Granada. The city lies at an altitude of 913 metres, on the centre of the Hoya of Guadix, a high plain at the northern foothills of the Sierr ...

, Spain * Rubí, Spain *

Santo Tirso Santo Tirso () is a city and municipality located in the north of Porto Metropolitan Area, 25 km from central Porto, Portugal. In the region, the Ave Valley, there is a large center of textile industry. The population in 2011 was 71,530, in ...

References

External links

Official website of Celanova
Municipalities in the Province of Ourense {{Galicia-geo-stub

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

See also

References

External links