Cabezón de Liébana

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Cabezón de Liébana
View of the village of Lamedo and the Picos de Europa
View of the village of Lamedo and the Picos de Europa
coat of arms Map of Spain
Coat of arms of Cabezón de Liébana
Cabezón de Liébana (Spain)
Finland road sign 311 (1994-2020) .svg
Basic data
Autonomous Community : Cantabria
Comarca : Liébana
Coordinates 43 ° 8 ′  N , 4 ° 35 ′  W Coordinates: 43 ° 8 ′  N , 4 ° 35 ′  W
Height : 363  msnm
Area : 81.43 km²
Residents : 616 (Jan. 1, 2019)
Population density : 7.56 inhabitants / km²
Postal code : 39571
Municipality number  ( INE ): 39013
administration
Website : Cabezón de Liébana

Cabezón de Liébana is a place and a municipality in the west of the autonomous region of Cantabria in Spain with 616 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2019).

location

The villages of the municipality of Cabezón de Liébana are located at altitudes of 300 to 400 meters above sea level. d. M .; the neighboring town of Potes is only about five kilometers (driving distance) to the northwest. The closest major city is Santander, about 107 kilometers northeast . The Río Bullón and the Río Lamedo flow through the municipality .

Population development

year 1960 1970 1981 1991 2001 2014
Residents 1,892 1,361 953 908 679 628

In the second half of the 19th century the community always had well over 2,000 inhabitants. The mechanization of agriculture resulted in a significant population decline in the second half of the 20th century. The community consists of 13 villages and hamlets, each with around 15 to 150 inhabitants.

Economy and Infrastructure

The soils and the rainy, but mild climate were well suited for the cultivation of grain, wine and vegetables, whereby the inhabitants of earlier centuries lived largely as self-sufficient in this regard ; dairy farming and chicken rearing were also operated. Since the middle of the 20th century tourism has developed in the form of the rental of holiday apartments ( casas rurales ), which has been revived again in 1995 with the creation of the Picos de Europa National Park .

history

Nothing is known about the early history of the area, because neither the Celts and the Romans, nor the Visigoths and Moors left any traces on the municipality. The Romanesque church of Santa María de Piasca indicates a settlement at the latest since the Middle Ages.

Attractions

Santa María de Piasca
  • Apart from the scenic charm of the area, the individual villages of the municipality of Cabezón de Liébana have no sights.
  • The exception is the village of Piasca with its Romanesque church of Santa María . This is a single-aisled building, mostly made of roughly worked rubble stones ; only the corner stones and the stones of the buttresses and the west facade are more precisely carved. A small highlight of Romanesque art in northern Spain are the figurative design of the west portal and the group of figures above - the latter consists of three statues, the two outer ones depicting the apostles Peter (key) and Paul (forehead); the figure of Our Lady in the middle is significantly younger. The frame design is also noteworthy - while the two apostles are covered by profiled three-pass arches, the Madonna stands under a round or pointed arch . The two central capitals are formed by torn predatory mouths. The capitals of the portal garment show the recurring struggle between good and evil as well as centaurs and other hybrid beings ( chimeras ) in tendrils. Further figures can be found in the archivolts, but vegetable motifs predominate here. The small gate on the south side is also noteworthy. The interior of the church is vaulted; there are more Romanesque capitals here - including one with a scene of the Adoration of the Kings .

  • West portal

  • Capitals on the left portal wall

  • Capitals on the right portal wall

  • Group of figures above the west portal

  • Gate on the south side

  • Capital with Adoration of the Magi

Surroundings

  • The Santo Toribio de Liébana Monastery, only about eight kilometers to the northwest, attracts many Spanish tourists every year.
  • A trip to the pre-Romanesque church of Santa María de Lebeña , twelve kilometers to the north, is also recommended.
  • A well-known excursion destination is also the high valley Fuente Dé, about 28 kilometers to the west, with its cable car station.

Web links

Commons : Cabezón de Liébana  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Cifras oficiales de población resultantes de la revisión del Padrón municipal a 1 de enero . Population statistics from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (population update).