Álava: the Sanctuary of Nª Sª de Estívaliz

'Although, in general, it seems that the Celts adapted and assimilated the spirit of the places where they were, during centuries of wandering life, there is a series of specifically Celtic deities that have connections in space or time with the cult of the Black Madonna. ' (1)

Little more than a kilometer is the distance that separates Argandoña and its interesting parish dedicated to the figure of a no less interesting saint -Santa Columba (2) - of one of the most important and emblematic Marian shrines of the province of Álava: of Nª Sª de Estivaliz. A place where, in case the visitor has any doubts, one feels the permanence - in spite of being conveniently made up of Orthodox Christianity, especially after the actions carried out by San Martín Dumiense against those he called veneratore lapidi (3) - of a primordial figure, still very present in the collective memory of many peoples, and in particular, in this recondite historical-cultural vergel that is Euskalerria: Mari, the Great Mother Goddess.

In fact, the Romanesque image that is venerated here - apart from the figure in the form of a bust of San Prudencio, Patron of the province - has those characteristics of the Black Virgin, which points out the special peculiarities of the place. A place, whose telism possibly knew those past cultures, including the Celtic, of which there is still some trace in the form of those funerary monuments -according to the general opinion, with which, particularly, I do not end up agreeing- which are the dolmens. Or at least, the reproduction of some of them, which point out - I insist again - the eminently sacred character of the place since time immemorial.

With such antecedents, it would not be in any way strange, to intuit the presence of an order of monks-warriors and also mystics -at least, in the most select chapters of the organization- that, somehow and to judge by the places where they used to settle, they became guardians and custodians of the Old Tradition: the Templars, whose godfather, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, is known to be a devotee of this type of images and at the same time a fervent observer of Nature -like the ancient Druids- part of whose interest or passion was revealed in his well-known Epistle 106. Whether or not the idea is shared, the truth is that all these elements -including that primordial forest that serves as a protective environment for the sanctuary and at the same time confers a halo of secrecy and mystery - they are present here, in Estivaliz, and they are easy to glimpse.

It would be difficult to indicate at what time the first monastic communities settled here, but the oldest references, apparently, date from the year 1074, when the Count of Estivaliz, Álvaro González de Guinea endows an altar under the invocation of San Millán. Later, in the year 1138, María López. niece of Diego López de Haro, lord of Vizcaya, donates the church to the Benedictine community of Santa María la Real de Nájera; dependency that remained until 1431, year in which his patronage passed into the hands of the count of Salvatierra, who kept it until 1542, when it was transferred to the Order of Santiago and later, in more modern times, to the municipality of Vitoria.

It is not surprising, on the other hand, that given the characteristics and differences in style that are observed in the construction, the specialists maintain the existence of several workshops in different times, being of the first, a workshop of Aragonese origin. Nor should we rule out that part of the materials used, had their origin in other nearby temples come to less, and it might even be possible that some of them came from the nearby church of Argandoña.

The symbology displayed, both in corbels and capitals, is rich and varied, lending itself to multiple interpretations -in individual ways-, although the catechetical introduction of passages from the Old and New Testaments prevails, even if it is, collectively speaking, as well as allusions to greed and lust, which could be discussed, at least, in relation to the latter, because it would not be the first time they identify with such, images that actually correspond with allusions to the primordial figure that we mentioned at the beginning of the present: the Great Mother Goddess.

Representation, eminently allusive, that we would find in other places of the province, as it could be the main one of the parish of Délica. Interesting to mention, it is also the magnificent baptismal font, the base of whose glass shows some elaborate foliaceous motifs -possibly referring to the primordial world and the Old Religion- over which rise Romanesque arches, no less elaborate, showing different images, possibly allusive to the subsequent period of evangelization of the place.

Some references lead us to suppose that at some time between the XII-XIII centuries, in which the construction of the temple is dated, there was a cloister of which, at the moment, no vestige remains. But be that as it may, the important thing, in this case, is not the construction itself -rica in details and not exempt of beauties- but the place where it is located and what it really represents.

Notes:

(1) Ean Begg: 'The Black Virgins. The great Templar mystery ', Ediciones Martínez Roca, S.A., 1987, page 82.
(2) Recall the existence of another really interesting temple that is under the dedication of this same saint, the church of Albendiego, in the province of Guadalajara.
(3) Stone worshipers.

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