Art and Eroticism: the Collegiate Church of San Pedro de Cervatos

In his famous essay 'Psychoanalysis of Art', Freud warned, in the interesting chapter dedicated to the extraordinary and complex figure of Leonardo da Vinci, about the frequency with which great artists were pleased to vent their fantasy in erotic and even obscene representations . In fact, what could be obscene in Renaissance art, of which Leonardo, no doubt, was not the only representative but one of the most prolific teachers, was nothing else, at least in the face of the gallery, that regression to the classic patterns and therefore, 'pagans', to whom we had to add that 'collateral damage', to name it in some way, of the cult to the body, just left behind an era, crossed out as dark perhaps with too much vehemence, as was the medieval one, where it precisely incarnated, comparatively speaking, the worm, the bait that the devil served to bring into his net some fish too attached to their voracious natural instincts.

Some fish, by the way, that barely understood anything of the complex world of spirit, much less shared the idea of mortification and sackcloth, as seals of guarantee, comparatively speaking, that would be implanted in the passport of his soul to transfer the borders of a kingdom, the one of the Heavens -and I do not intend, at all, to plagiarize Ridley Scott and its interesting film- that each time demanded more guarantees of purity, sacrifice and perfection, according to the considerations of an estate that shone by the ostentation and preservation of privileges, the Ecclesia, which was not only the first transgressor of the rule, but also political, ladino and incorrect as few-and I fall short, but it is not a matter of imitating the Marx Brothers in the West , adding more fuel to the fire-knew how to look the other way when he was interested or circumstances so recommended.

Erwin Panofsky, of German origin and one of the great art historians of the twentieth century, said that 'anyone who is confronted with a work of art, whether aesthetically recreated or rationally investigated, should be interested in their work. three constitutive elements: the materialized form, the idea (that is, in the visual arts, the theme) and, of course, the content. And in reference to the subject at hand, the implicit sexuality in the temples, the great hermeneut or historian of the religions Mircea Eliade, refers to an interesting episode about the eroticism underlying the formidable paintings of the Hindu temple of Ajanta, wondering how a Buddhist monk he could free himself from 'the temptations of the flesh', surrounded by so many superb nudity, answering then, by means of Tantrism; or what comes to be the same, if free and narrowly interpreted: sex as a vehicle towards a sacred transcendence.

There is no doubt that all these considerations could form the basis on which such a complex issue is based. But perhaps, after all, it is not so much, if to these recitals we add a series of factors, conveniently more human and worldly, such as those that bring us closer to the time we are talking about-XIIth and XIIIth centuries -; the harsh northern environment where this temple rises, as well as some other temples of similar characteristics and content; the special circumstances of life in those places; the 'festive' character and transgressor of the people, which in spite of everything was not lacking, as a counterpoint to the iron living conditions, where even the Church, which was not stupid, -not in vain, has survived comfortably for two thousand years - I looked to the other side with a rosary and patience, allowing the 'liberation' of a certain repressed libidinal dose-Freud come and think about it-and not last, but least, the period of insecurity and war, with the peremptory the need to bring children into the world to sustain a community subject to its designs and the designs of kings and masters, useful and necessary cannon fodder, which also contributed, in an objectively spiritual manner, to sustain the no less fierce battle of the Devil and Saint Miguel, as is the case in the psychostasis or weighing of souls, present and well in sight, in many temples of similar age and condition.

The stonemasons, independently of other allusions and complexities, also represented, in a way not free of fantasy, the function of 'chroniclers' of their time. And as such, either on their own initiative or on request, with their hammer and chisel gave shape to that set of myths and archetypes, as well as libidinous exteriorizations -consider them if you want, as part of the 'vices' of the time -, that surrounded the consciences and the relations of said historical period.

And let's not forget, that San Pedro de Cervatos, after all, was a Collegiate; and as its name indicates, in the idea of 'school', multiple disciplines, methods and teachings fit. This does not remove, of course, to hide the numerous mysteries added to this place and their peculiar representations -not only those of a sexual nature- and perhaps, as it might have been the case, to suggest the presence of some specific military order, since a fact certainly relevant: one of the interior capitals of the church of San Pedro de Cervatos, for its orgiastic and unnatural theme -men and animals, copulating together- recalls that one located in a similar place, in the church, much more humble , from Santiago de los Caballeros, to the Vera del Duero and outside the capital of Zamora.

A church, in addition, where they guarded arms and knights were armed - that the swagger, the sex and the military, have never been fought - that has also added the honor of having been the place of the consecration as such of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar , the Cid Campeador. One could also speculate, with certain 'orientalizing' connections, as evidenced by the presence of a Hindu-like ascetic, who is located on one of the capitals of a curious temple located in the neighboring Merindades of Burgos.

But leaving enigmas, mysteries and connections more or less amazing for better occasion, something else, is as we see it now, from our time, our knowledge and our moral perspectives of cataloging. In this regard, and perhaps for your own convenience, I am left with a phrase of Camilo José Cela, who on his second trip to the Alcarria and motivated, who knows, if for something similar to what can be seen here, in San Pedro de Cervatos, wrote that of: 'The traveler realizes that he is staying carcass and that as a young man he has no more than the three sub-powers of the soul -remember, feeling and desire- and the three theological subvirtues: cachondez (contained) , luck and some health to keep the type '. Of course, always keeping in mind what Pablo Picasso affirmed: 'art is the lie that makes us understand the truth, at least the understandable truth'.

Recommended bibliography:

• Sigmund Freud: 'Psychoanalysis of Art', Alianza Editorial, S.A., second edition, Madrid, 1971.
• Erwin Panofsky: 'The meaning in the visual arts', Alianza Editorial, S.A., fifth reprint, Madrid, 2016.
• Mircea Eliade: 'The proof of the labyrinth', Ediciones Cristiandad, S.L., Madrid, 1980.
• Camilo José Cela: 'New trip to the Alcarria', Plaza & Janés Editores, S.A., first edition, December 1986.
• Carlos Rojas: 'The mythical and magical world of Picasso', Editorial Planeta, S.A., Barcelona, 1984.

Related movie:

designed by: @txatxy