Religion

The Church of San Paio de Sabugueira, located in Lavacolla, is one of the last temples that pilgrims find on the French Way before reaching the Cathedral of Santiago. Dedicated to San Paio (San Pelayo), a young martyr of the tenth century, this church represents an important point of spirituality and rest.
Built in 1840, the temple features neoclassical architecture with a single nave, granite walls and a gabled roof. Its façade, sober and triangular, is crowned by a belfry with a bell, while inside the main altarpiece dedicated to the saint, side altars to the Virgen del Carmen and the Sacred Heart, and an octagonal baptismal font from the seventeenth century stand out.
In addition to its religious value, the church is part of a heritage environment that includes the Lavacolla cemetery, a cross with Christ seated, and the historic Lavacolla stream, where pilgrims purified themselves before entering Santiago.
The feast of San Paio is celebrated on June 26, with mass, procession and popular activities that reinforce the link between the community and its Jacobean tradition.

Located in the village of Lavacolla, within the parish of San Paio, this granite chapel was built in the nineteenth century and is intimately linked to the route of the French Way, serving as one of the last resting points for pilgrims approaching the Cathedral of Santiago.
With a classicist design, its floor plan is rectangular and has a small attached sacristy. Surrounded by a natural and traditional environment – with a fountain, transept, mill and bridge – it forms a picturesque heritage complex that brings serenity and beauty to the place.
The feast of Saint Lucia is celebrated on December 13, related to light and the winter solstice. In addition, in May the neighbors organize another party with mass, procession, traditional music and popular verbena, reinforcing the social and spiritual role of the chapel in the community of Lavacolla.

Located in the village of As Quintás, within the municipality of Santiago de Compostela, the Church of San Xulián do Carballal is a beautiful example of Galician rural Romanesque architecture, later enriched with Baroque elements. Its main structure dates from the 12th century, although it has been modified over time, especially in the 18th century, when the west façade was reformed and the sacristy was added.
The church has a rectangular floor plan with a single nave of small dimensions and an elongated apse, unusual in proportion to the nave. Its gabled roof is topped by a modern double bell tower, made of concrete. The current access doors, on the south and west walls, as well as their windows, are of more recent construction and are not part of the original design.
Despite its simplicity, decorative elements such as the corbels on the side walls are preserved, some with human and animal figures, although quite eroded. Geometric and plant motifs also stand out, and an antefixed cross in the apse that highlights its symbolic character.
The temple is surrounded by the local cemetery and the festival ground, forming part of a heritage site that includes a nearby cross and archaeological remains such as the Castro da Devesa do Carballal, a witness to the ancient history of the region.

The current church was rebuilt in 1926, erasing previous remains like the original Romanesque apse. During the construction work, sepulchral tombstones with inscriptions in Roman and Visigothic characters were found, one of them dedicated to the priest Sisnando, deceased in the year 956, which suggests there was a temple previous to the Romanesque one.
Inside, a polychromatic stone sculpture of Christ, probably of the XIII century, is conserved. In front of the temple we find a traditional Galician stone cross, with a smooth cross, typical of popular art.

This stone cross is located in Agualada, San Vicente de Marantes parish, and belongs to the Galician ethnographic heritage related to the English Way.
Built in granite, with a four-quartered platform with three steps. It has a square base with chamfers, square shaft with bevelled corners and cubic capital decorated with volutes. The cross is octogonal, with floral finishes and religious scenes. On the front side, Christ’s Descent is represented, with figures such as Saint Francisco. On the back, three mournful women appear, possibly the Virgin Mary, Mary Magdalene and Mary of Clopas.
This stone cross, dating from the XX century, is officially recognized by the Xunta de Galicia, and it’s conserved in a very good state. It’s a display of Galician popular art and of the devotion that marked the paths toward Santiago.

This small Romanesque hermitage, also known as Capela da Nosa Señora das Angustias, is located in Agualada, parish of San Vicente de Marantes, very close to A Sionlla and the route of the English Way to Santiago.
It was built in the 12th century, although it underwent major renovations in the 16th and 18th centuries.
It stands out for its Romanesque triumphal arch, reused from the old cloister of the Cathedral of Santiago, the work of the school of Master Mateo. It is surrounded by a walled enclosure with an atrium, and at its entrance there are sculpted lions reminiscent of the Portico of Glory. Inside, a Baroque altarpiece and medieval decorative elements of great artistic value are preserved.
It is a place with a strong symbolic and heritage charge, ideal for those who enjoy Romanesque art and the history of Compostela.

Fountain and small chapel dedicated to San Brais at the entrance of the Sar Collegiate Church enclosure. On February 3rd a crowded romeria is held in homage to this saint, intermediary of throat issues.