Visit to the Hermitage of La Antigua in Zumarraga

The hermitage of Santa María de La Antigua stands two kilometres from the centre of Zumarraga (Gipuzkoa), on the slopes of Mount Beloki. It is believed to have been built on the remains of a 12th-century defensive fort, with the earliest documentary evidence of the church dating from 1366. It served as the parish church of Zumarraga until 1576. Its Romanesque exterior is markedly austere, which makes the interior all the more striking: an extraordinary coffered ceiling of oak timber, with an intricate structure of beams, tie-rods, parapets and braces, that has earned it the title of cathedral of Basque hermitages. Local legend adds another layer: according to tradition, the gentiles — mythological beings in Basque folklore — hurled stones from the Aizkorri range to prevent its construction, and the villagers used those very stones to complete the temple. The hermitage is part of the Route of the Three Temples of Ignatian Land, alongside the sanctuaries of Loiola and Arantzazu, making it a natural stop on a broader cultural journey through Gipuzkoa.