The parish church of the Spanish village of Villamorón, known as la catedral del páramo, the Cathedral of the Moorland has raised €30,000 in a crowdfunding appeal.
For eight centuries, the church in the northern wilds of Castilla y León, ceased being a place of worship in the seventies.
The Friends of Villamorón has raised financial funds, via a crowdfunding appeal to help restore the church’s interior, including the conservation of paintings that are in situ on the walls and ceiling.
The building construction is circa. mid-13th century, Saint James’s deemed to have served as a model for churches built in Seville and Córdoba after King Ferdinand III’s successful reconquista campaigns in Andalucía.
Repairs undertaken include replacing the sacristy floor, new doors on the towers and protecting the belltower from the damage done by pigeons.
A €1m regional government grant of Castilla y León has been spent on shoring up the building’s exterior.
During the Franco era large numbers of inhabitants deserted rural areas to find work in the cities.
The church has stood untouched for 800 years with the transition from the Romanesque to the Gothic.
José María Bustillo, who was born in his great-grandparents’ house in the village in 1957, has renovated the property and spends his time between Villamorón and his home in Barcelona – the only official resident of the village that he left with his parents when he was seven.
Caption: Parish of Villamorón la catedral del páramo Church of Saint James the Apostle.
