The Church of Saint Thyrsus (; ) is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Asturian Romanesque church situated in

Oviedo Oviedo () or Uviéu (Asturian language, Asturian: ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains th ...

, in

Asturias Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...

, northern

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The church was established in the 790s. Dedicated to

Saint Thyrsus Saint Thyrsus or Thyrse (, literally "thyrsus"; Spanish and ; ; died 251) is venerated as a Christian martyr. He was killed for his faith in Apollonia, Phrygia, during the persecution of Decius, along with Leucius (Λεύκιος ''Leúkios'') ...

, it was built by

Tioda Tioda was a prominent Asturian architect of the 9th century. He worked primarily in Oviedo, where he constructed the church of San Salvador which was later elevated to the rank of cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oviedo and the Royal P ...

, the royal architect of

Alfonso II of Asturias Alfonso II of Kingdom of Asturias, Asturias (842), nicknamed the Chaste (), was the king of Asturias during two different periods: first in the year 783 and later from 791 until his death in 842. Upon his death, Nepotian of Asturias, Nepotian ...

. The Great Fire of

in 1521 and rebuilding in the 18th century removed most of the original church, except for a three-light window.

Building

The building has suffered so much from alterations over the centuries and only the general plan has been preserved. It is that of a basilica with nave and aisles divided by rude stone piers set at unequal intervals, from which round arches spring. In the easternmost bay, however, owing to the smaller span, the arch was made sufficiently pointed to raise its crown to the same height as the others. This irregularity was already typical of Imperial Roman times, when barrel vaults were given a pointed form in order to make the height of rooms of varying size uniform, as it was necessary to raise the crown of the vault in some of them. This is illustrated by various chambers in the

House of Tiberius A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condit ...

on the

Palatine A palatine or palatinus (Latin; : ''palatini''; cf. derivative spellings below) is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman Empire, Roman times.

. There is no satisfactory explanation of the "many angels" the building is said to have presented in the Codex Vigilianus. In the rectangular sanctuary atriplet round-arched window ( is preserved. With its pre-romanesque bases, rough brick arches, and capitals with rude packed leaves, it gives an idea of the better style of building and carving in the time of

. It is known that the church of San Tirso housed Royal Chapel.

Notes

References

* * * * {{Authority control 9th-century churches in Spain Churches in Asturias with Pre-Romanesque work Tirso 790s establishments 8th-century establishments in Spain Bien de Interés Cultural landmarks in Asturias

Building

See also

Notes

References