The writing team
The Light of Images Foundation:
If we had to highlight an event that happened during this last year in our region worthy of being mentioned for its cultural relevance, undoubtedly this was the celebration in the neighboring town of Alcoi, from 23 of March of 2011 at the end of March 2012, of the exhibition organized by the Fundació La Llum de les Imatges: Art Paths. Dedicated to the holy patterns, both from the towns of the Alcoià region and the County, as of the guilds of the different trades existing in our lands.
The Foundation, together with the ecclesiastical leaders of our region, apart from inviting some artists for their uniqueness and importance, at the beginning of last year they did a huge job for the selection of the pieces to be exhibited; fish that, somehow, they had the task of representing the importance, the wealth for its artistic value and the great variety of styles of our heritage, preserved through the centuries, despite the conflicts experienced throughout our history.
The exhibition, as is usual in all the ones usually organized by the Fundació La Llum de Les Imatges, is concentrated in different headquarters: emblematic buildings that have been restored in part or in their entirety in order to house the aforementioned exhibition and that, subsequently and once completed, they will again be governed by their usual administrators, which in this case of Alcoi have been:
– Chapel of Our Lady of the Despairs.
– Church of Santa Maria.
– Former Bean Asylum for the Poor and Helpless Elderly.
Like this, in the three locations of the exhibition we can see pieces from various origins and populations, among which we can mention, due to its proximity to Banyeres de Mariola, the neighboring towns of Biar, The Canyada, The Camp de Mirra, Bless her, Bocairent, Alfafara, of course a long etcetera, impossible to summarize.
As far as our people are concerned, we must highlight seven pieces of paramount importance for all bathers, for different and varied reasons: two pieces of parish property: the rainy layer of the old Tern of Sant Jordi, and a bronze peace holder on silver with the image of Saint James “kill moros”; a small property of the Confraternity of Sant Jordi: the bronze model of the Sant Jordi Monument, work of the famous Valencian artist Manuel Boix; the life-size head of the Sant Jordi Monument, contributed by the author himself, and probably the most important piece of which represents our town due to its antiquity and artistic value: Calvary, end of the old Gothic altarpiece, from the 15th century, of the old church; an image of Sant Jordi by the bather Vicente Ferrero Molina; and lastly: the reliquary of Sant Jordi who is venerated in the Metropolitan Cathedral Church of Valencia.
Let us now pay attention to each of these seven magnificent works of art.
rain cover:
It is the only blemish that has reached us today from what is called in our town the Tern de Sant Jordi, which was given to the parish of Banyeres de Mariola by the liberal politician José Canalejas Méndez, when he was deputy in the Cortes for the district of Alcoi. It was used for decades in the solemnity of the Patron Saint, until the destruction of most of the pieces in July 1936.
“The Tern was made by the religious ornament workshop J. Guerrero Torres in the vicinity of 1910, and constitutes a sample of the quality of the magnificent Valencian fabrics used in worship and liturgy at the beginning of the 20th century. It is made with a rich satin fabric in red, belonging to the martyr Sant Jordi, Banyeres de Mariola pattern, Spoiled with different types of fine to enhanced gold threads. The Tern, as our elders tell us, it was made up of two Dalmatians, a chasuble and its respective accessories. Of the aforementioned layer, the brooches should also be highlighted (pins), which are cast and chiseled silver, are marked with: «A / GASSET»; and the punch of the Valencian, and in its center a neo-baroque inscription with the symbol of the Virgin Mary, bordered by the social reason of the worker, in capital letters.”
We have to refer here to what thanks to the good work and the magnificent relationships of our countryman Juan Castelló Mora, the layer has been restored in its entirety by the aforementioned institution and, more specifically, by the Textile Restoration Department. At the same time we want to call for this magnificent work of textile restoration, don't get damaged, remaining in oblivion, and can shine in all its splendor in our town, being exposed in the best way possible.
Butter of St. James “kill moros”:
The author who made it in solid bronze with a silver bath is not known. It has sizes of 20 x 16 cm, and it is believed that it was made in the second half of the 18th century; belongs to the parish church of Santa María de la Misericordia de Banyeres de Mariola.
“"El Portapau" is a piece of goldsmithery, used in liturgical celebrations. Initially at the time of peace it was given to all the faithful present at the celebration. Later men were separated from women and, finally, it was introduced to kiss the Portapau until the Second Vatican Council, from which it fell entirely into disuse.
The piece has an outline profusely decorated with plowed ornamental motifs, with rockeries with a very cut and convoluted profile, palms and volutes in the form of “C” inverted in the baroque style. Although the material is bronze with a silver bath, the invoice and the quality of the piece are exceptional. The upper part is finished by a kind of curved frieze topped by a rockery, standing out in the central area surrounded by profuse decoration and volutes, St. James on horseback “kill moros”, one of the traditional representations of the Apostle Santiago the Major.”
As it is believed and has come down to us through the popular tradition of our town, this Portapau was part of a set of two identical pieces, one currently missing, with the representation of Sant Jordi and the dragon.
Model of the Monument to Sant Jordi de Banyeres de Mariola:
“Durant l’any 2001 Manuel Boix meets the request of the Brotherhood of Sant Jordi de Banyeres de Mariola to create the Monument to Sant Jordi, his Patron. The 22 February 2002 the model of the monument that Banyeres de Mariola would erect is officially presented, and which represents a Sant Jordi who does not follow the model of Romanesque features of Sant Jordi "el Vellet" who has so much devotion in the town.
Boix provides a new iconography of Sant Jordi in a refined style, stylized, full of details and, in a way idealized, Sant Jordi «El Vellet», by little, in a unique balance on top of the dragon, which can come as a surprise due to the apparent naturalness of the scene, in which the calmness and lack of effort should be highlighted when he sticks the cross spear into the dragon. Likewise, its decorative richness should be highlighted. A Sant Jordi with a cloak that flies pushed by the wind, that lifts it and raises it far above the wooden pedestal that supports the image and that gives the whole an optical sensation of weightlessness.
The project presented in plaster is approved on the same day of its presentation to the brothers in assembly, thus starting Manuel Boix the tasks to transfer the model to bronze and to prepare with the architect Francisco Picó Silvestre the space where it would be located, which would be exactly where the conjuror's hermitage had been located years before, at the feet of the Castle.
From this model Manuel Boix will make a limited series of identical sculptures, originals, numbered and signed, the first of which is this one, property of the Contraria. Others were sold to patrons, individuals and companies of the town, and another, raffled. The Row of Students from our locality was the lucky winner in the raffle to help obtain income in order to cover the total cost of the Sant Jordi Monument, with which all of the bathers today feel fully satisfied.”
Detail of the head of Sant Jordi from the Banyeres de Mariola Monument:
El Cap de Sant Jordi by Manuel Boix is a full-scale reproduction, of a part of the sculptural set Monu¬ment a Sant Jordi de Banyeres de Mariola, which the artist wanted to melt for his private collection and which is currently exhibited in the author's own foundation.
“This piece helps us to imagine the total dimensions of a work of 910 x 280 x 240 cm, with a very high base of Corten steel that stylizes the whole and underlines the verticality of the mountain and the castle with which our town is crowned.
The serenity that his face conveys, his expression, it has a certain renaissance aftertaste and an exquisite representation of feelings, which shows us the inner balance that comes to be externalized and tells us everything about the character.”
calvary – Ram of the Gothic altar of the Altar of the Old Church:
Work of Joan Reixach (1415 -Valencia 1491). Made with tempera and oil on a wooden table. It has sizes of 106 x 81 cm. Made between 1460-1465.
“Joan Reixach was an outstanding 15th century Valencian painter, of which it is necessary to highlight its artistic forms that start from an assimilation of the rich international Gothic.
At Calvary Jesus is represented on the cross, with his head resting on his right shoulder, which centers this painful composition. At his feet a young Magdalena is crying. behind her, the Mother of God, fainted, she is cared for by the other two Marys. on the right, St. John also weeps sitting and beats his chest with one hand and shows a pained gesture. Behind him approaches a group of soldiers dressed in armor and carrying spears and banners. A landscape with large rocks, a walled city with pointed towers, roads and plains with some trees set up, in the background, a beautiful landscape that enhances the whole. The background is golden with the usual chopped decoration with plant motifs in the shape of grapes. The work is framed by an elegant conopial arch with leaves and a blue background with plant motifs.”
Since 1992 the work belongs to the collection of Casa Masaveu in Oviedo ¡ it had previously been part of the collection of Ramón Llaures in Neguri, in Bilbao. In origin, this Calvary crowned the altarpiece of the High Altar of Banyeres de Mariola which had Our Lady of Mercy as the titular of the old church, located to the present Main Theater.
Since he left our town, never again had he been so close to the place for which the missing altarpiece was conceived and, more specifically, this freckle. Hem to congratulate us, to my, why it has been available to all those who have wanted to admire it.
Saint George:
Work of our countryman Vicente Ferrero Molina, was made in 1999 using bronze. It has measurements of 93 x 30 x 24 cm. and belongs to the author's own private collection.
“Tight stroke, avoiding anecdotal recharges, He is currently Professor of Drawing. The representation of the Saint in the contemporary world is not an easy task; the times are very different from those other historical ones in which profane art was an exception compared to the usual commission of churches and cathedrals. Ferrero has never run away from this challenge and it is his, very characteristic works. Sant Jordi is a good example of this.
Thanks to your theoretical training – practice uses Donatello's well-known work as a clear model, not only as a tribute to the Renaissance world, Ferrero has never shied away from this challenge and these are his very characteristic works, Ferrero has never shied away from this challenge and these are his very characteristic works, for its simplicity, the usual baroque style of the best-known representations of Sant Jordi, very popular all over the world. Ferrero has never shied away from this challenge and these are his very characteristic works, Ferrero opts for a standing Sant Jordi, I will be, with the spear and the shield as warrior symbols but with a calm expression, Ferrero has never shied away from this challenge and these are his very characteristic works, with a neat anatomy that reminds me of the classic Roman gladiator, which for us bathers takes us by the hand to remember our Sant Jordi “the old man”.
Reliquary of the arm of Sant Jordi:
Since the exhibition is mainly dedicated to the patronage of the towns that surround the Serra de Mariola, (next to the guilds), it is worth noting the coincidence with the neighboring city of Alcoi in sharing Patró: Saint George the Martyr. This has allowed us to see for the first time in our lands a relic, quite large, of Sant Jordi's arm, which is venerated by the Cathedral of Valencia.
“The interior inset attributed to Pere Bernés was made in silver, or, enamels and wood. The reliquary has dimensions of 60 x 25 x 25 cm; i l’encast: 25 x 6 x 3 cm. It is currently venerated in the Chapel of the Relics of the Metropolitan Cathedral of Valencia.
The outer silver hand has a door that allows you to see the relic of the three fingers, which would be the ones that symbolically took off. What apparently looks like a bracelet could represent the St. George knight's chain mail. The arm and pedestal, wood silver, They are modern work.
The great bone of the Saint is protected by an inset of gilded silver and enamels. These are two extreme parts linked by three fine rods that contain the inscription in Gothic script:
“This is the greatest bone of the arm of + Holy + George + which plots + the queen + of + / Hipre gives Eleanor to Mr. Peter the third king of Darago in Barsalona at seven / of December of the year of the nativity of our Lord one thousand three hundred and seventy-seven."
The encast of the greater bone belongs to the Catalan jewelry of the moment. Let's remember that Peter III wanted this relic very much and that once he came to power it would not take long to enrich it. The piece has been attributed to Pere Bernés, silversmith to the king in those years. The greater end contains an enamel with the figure of Sant Jordi, with the armor, spear and shield with the red cross. On the sides, floral decoration on, are in a face shield of Peter and the other the Queen Eleanor. The latter contains the arms of the kings of Cyprus and Jerusalem, for the Cypriot monarchs were nominal heirs of the defunct Crusader kingdom of Jerusalem. The smaller end of the relic is decorated with foliage and an enamel with the arms of King Pere en cairon. L’any 1410 Barcelona silversmith Francesc Vilardell received 44 salaries to fix the silver reliquary.
The relics were shown to parishioners annually, during a very solemn ceremony. L’any 1820 a brochure was printed with an explanation of the holy relics that are in the Holy Metropolitan Cathedral Church of Valencia, which are shown on the second day of Easter Resurrection.
The headquarters in Valencia also preserves the relic of the other arm of Sant Jordi, which had to walk four enamels, disappeared, with the royal arms in cairo.”
Per cloure, we have nothing left but to congratulate ourselves, because of the call ¡ diffusion made by the City Council, the Parish of Santa Maria, the Contraria de Sant Jordi and the Font Bona Cultural Association, by various means of communication, apart from the promotion carried out by the Fundació La Llum de Les Imatges, many of the citizens of our town have responded. There are many who have visited the Camins d'Art Exhibition, among them the Primary students of the Fundació Ribera College, who were recognized as the number visitor 100.000 of this exhibition, to the month of November 2011. There are many people who have been able to enjoy these seven pieces directly related to our town, Banyeres de Mariola, in addition to the important heritage that our counties have been able to take care of, save and preserve for future generations, just like us, they can enjoy it.
N. B. The information for the preparation of this article has been taken from the Catalog of the Camins d'Art Exhibition; the website of Contraria de Sant Jordi; the number. 6 from Bigneres magazine, 2011; and the no. 108 from the Chronicle of Banyeres, December 2011.
