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| 0062 Sant Miquel d'Engolasters Church |
It is known, the buffer zones located between the great powers were constantly exposed to invasions and excesses of all kinds.
Principality of Andorra is a rare and happy exception, its borders remaining virtually unchanged since 1278, when the conflict between
Count of Foix and the
Bishop of La Seu d'Urgell was resolved by the signing of a
paréage, which provided that its sovereignty will be shared between these two. The period which preceded this agreement (between 9th and 13th centuries) was one intense from political point of view, but also artistic. Among the major achievements of this period are several
Romanesque churches, eight of them being included on the Tentative List of UNESCO WHS.
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| 0451 Sant Joan de Caselles Church |
Sant Miquel d'Engolasters Church, built before the 12th century in a strategic spot with a fabulous panoramic view out over the capital
Andorra la Vella, the church invites visitors to head to
Engolasters Lake or the
valley of Madriu-Perafita-Claror,
a UNESCO WHS since 2004. The rectangular design houses a
nave, a semi-circular apse, a gable roof, a belfry and a later arcade
porch. The building is characterised by the disproportion between the
nave and the 17m high belfry. The top floor of the belfry preserves one
of the few Romanesque sculptural pieces in Andorra - carved heads in the
centre of the double window arches - and the interior houses
reproductions of the Romanesque mural paintings by the master artist of
Santa Coloma (12th century), now held by the National Art Museum of
Catalonia.
