Leboreiro (A Coruña) (0)

Did you know that... Leboreiro

Together with O Coto and Desecabo form the parish of Santa María do Leboreiro belonging to the municipality of Melide. Placed to the vera of the Way of Saint James French the place of O Coto is the first population nucleus of A Coruña in the route jacobea. Fernando II donates the place of Leboreiro to the Monastery of Sobrado in the year 1185 and in that same century the Codex Calixtino already names it as Campus Leporarius that later would give place to its present name. This small medieval enclave, according to documents from the 12th century, had a pilgrims' hospital that was later rehabilitated by the Ulloa in the 15th century, and of which two walls with the coats of arms of this family remain in time. Remains of past times are the remains of the Roman road still in use by pilgrims from O Coto to Leboreiro and heading towards Furelos passing by Desecabo.

To discover What to see in Leboreiro, O Coto and Desecabo?

To enter Leboreiro is to enter a medieval village in which the paved floor of its main street, flanked by stone houses, brings the visitor closer to a beautiful cross, the preamble to the 13th century Romanesque-Gothic church of Santa María, in which the tympanum of its façade is striking, with a beautiful sculpted image of the Virgin, and beautiful 16th century wall paintings inside the church. Opposite are the remains of the old pilgrims' hospital, known as the infirmary, and on its walls the coats of arms of the Ulloa family. A cabeceiro, a hórreo made of interwoven sticks, also calls for its protagonism. And to bid farewell to this special place what better than to do it through its famous medieval bridge, which over the Seco River bears witness to the passage, throughout its history, of hundreds and hundreds of pilgrims on their way to Santiago. This bridge, from the 14th century, is one of the most typical of the council of Melide and very possibly replaced another from the Roman period. The bridge was restored in 1984, and it was provided with a parapet that it lacked before.

Festivities

Leboreiro celebrates its festivities on 15 August in honour of Nuestra Señora de Leboreiro.​

Traditions

Leboreiro was an important Jacobean enclave in the Middle Ages and is also said to be the place where the Virgin welcomes pilgrims.

Curiosities

The church of Santa María de Leboreiro is, declared by the Consellería de Cultura, a heritage landmark of the Way.

The Legend

Legend has it that in a place near the church water began to flow, but this is not the wonderful thing, but this new fountain at night emitted a bright light and during the day it was its pleasant aroma that attracted attention. The people of the place, curious and expectant before such facts, dug around them and found the image of a Virgin. Satisfied with the discovery, they took her to the church, but the image always returned to the fountain. Then an artist who was aware of the facts, came up with the idea of sculpting the image of the Virgin in the tympanum of the doorway to the church and from that very moment the carving of Santa Maria remained definitely inside the temple.