11/25: Ronda: Spain's 1st Bullring & Santa Maria Church

Ronda's commanding Iglesia de la Merced, situated in one of the main squares, was unfortunately only open for daily Mass at 9:30. We wandered over again to explore more of the town's small park, Alamdea del Tajo, for more spectacular views from its overlook.

Another day with dreary weather in southern Spain - Steven and I said later we'd never had so much rain on any of our previous overseas adventures.

Even though it was cloudy, we still had marvelous views of the valley way below the overlook. I was curious to see more of that small house in the lower center of the photo so took a close up of it and some of the other properties.

No, the skies didn't miraculously clear up as we visited Spain's first great Bullring in Ronda - I cheated and took this photo from the previous post! Ronda was the birthplace of modern bullfighting in the 16th century when King Philip II initiated bullfighting as war training for knights. In his era, there were two types of bullfighting: one with noble nights on horseback and a much rougher, man versus beast type with no rules. In the early 1700s, Francisco Romero combined the two and established modern bullfighting which included rules here in Ronda. He introduced the scarlet cape, held unfurled with a stick. His grandson Pedro was one of the first great matadors, killing nearly 6,000 bulls in his career. 

We entered the bullfighters' Chapel first to see where every matador would stop to pray to the Virgin of Sorrows for safety - and hope to see her again - before going into the ring. 

I thought it was interesting to learn in another exhibit that, under the old regime monarchies, only the king's carriage could be drawn by eight horses. Princes were only permitted to have six horses, while dukes had four, bishops had three and others were allowed a maximum of a pair or just a single horse.

The Landscape with Bulls and Garrochistas oil painting was special not only for its large size, unusual for its genre in the mid 1800s, but also for its composition with the figures integrated in the landscape where the mountains stood out against the dramatic sky.

On the morning of each bullfight, lots would be drawn to determine which rider would get which bull. There are eight bulls in each section of a bullfight, with two being used as substitutes in case of rejection by the matadors. The term 'toro' is only used for bulls who are four years old. They could never have participated in a bullfight before. 

Bullfighting on foot became popular for the lower classes mostly, but it was prohibited by Charles III in 1785 except for those bullrings who donated profits to charity. Those sanctions were made even stronger by Charles IV. Once Charles V, however, began lancing bulls, it became a national sport. In the 18th century, the first bullfighting rules, known as canons, came into effect. The following century brought about more rules, including the specific architecture of bullrings. 

Archaeological and artistic monuments discovered in the Iberian Peninsula and as far away as China provided ample evidence of the importance of bovine creatures in human civilizations since the Paleolithic Age. During the third millennium BC, bullfighting rituals were celebrated at the defensive walls of Sumerian settlements.

The Spanish fighting bull belonged to the species Bos Taurus; this was a replica of a urus skull found nearby which was from the Middle Pleistocene era, 240,000 years ago. Urus survived in Europe until almost 400 years ago when the last specimen was captured in Poland in 1627.

Although killing bulls on foot was outlawed during the Middle Ages, popular games and combats with bulls were still practiced in remote villages. Noblemen would still practice the sport by goring bulls. What was at first just hunting was transformed into a spectacle.

The Reconquista of Spain from Muslim control and the emergence of new towns with more permissive laws led to the revival  in many places of popular fiestas involving bulls. During the Renaissance period and the development of the urban way of life, the art of bullfighting finally spread to the big cities.

Another exhibit stated from the beginning of its reign in Spain, the House of Austria showed a keen interest in bullfighting with Emperor Charles I himself goring bulls. It was this dynasty that turned the art into a national spectacle by calling it the Royal Show because it was attended by the king and other members of the royal family.

Reading the explanations for the costumes and equipment helped make the bullfight experience more real. The mantera hat, on the floor below, was worn in the 19th century. The curved lance or sword was used to kill the bull. I'd never known that bulls were color-blind so the traditional red cape was designed to disguise all the blood!

Lead irons were used to protect the matadors' legs.

This was a typical 19th century poster advertising an upcoming bullfight. The only thing that needed to be changed in it was the details about the timing of the spectacle.

It was fun reading about bullfighting costumes that first became regulated in the early 18th century with buckskin being required as it was believed it was very difficult to pierce. As the matadors refined their art of bullfighting and attracted large audiences, they sought to claim distinction to display their superiority. They secured approval for decorating their costumes with gilded embroidery which had been reserved for the royal family and the highest echelons of the clergy  and nobility. A close-fitting bolero jacket became a customary part of the matadors' uniform.

Examples of the jeweled and gold-embroidered dress capes matadors wore into the ring.

Ronda's most famous matador, Pedro Romero who was renowned for his bullfighting style, killed so many bulls without being wounded! I was surprised to learn that Romero's portrait was painted by Francisco Goya and that the original is hanging in a museum in Fort Worth, Texas!

I was intrigued by the large collection of bullfighting posters created by major figures in the art world for Ronda's annual feria or fair always scheduled for the first weekend in September. While the other ferias in Andalucia, this region of southern Spain, celebrate a patron saint, the Ronda fair glorifies legendary bullfighter Romero. 

All the other posters were original except this one created by Picasso.

The original engravings were done by Goya.

The painting of the Plaza Mayor in Madrid showed it filled with spectators for a bullfight.

There were only two arenas built solely for bullfighting: in Ronda and Seville. Elsewhere, bullfights were held in town squares. After exiting the exhibits, we took advantage of the opportunity to walk directly in the actual arena. The two-tiered arena was completed on May 19, 1785 on the 300th anniversary of the defeat of the Moors in Ronda.

The 136 Tuscan columns created a kind of 18th century Italian theater. As Rick Steves wrote in his travel book on Spain, "Lovers of the 'art' of bullfighting will explain that the event is much more than the actual killing of the bull. It celebrates the noble heritage and the Andalusian horse culture."

Pictured on the gates was the royal crown, Ronda's coat of arms and the cross of Burgundy. The letters represented the Real Maestranza de Caballeira de Ronda, the name of the bullring.

As you might imagine, the bullfight is an elaborate process that begins with a picador or bullfighter on horseback wounding the bull to weaken it and make it bleed. The matador and bull then confront each other alone, with the matador on his feet performing a few passes with the red cloth attached to a stick to demonstrate his courage, skills and knowledge of his profession. The matador

must apply the curved sword or lance in between the bull's fore ribs. He then must plunge three pairs of barbed darts into the bull's neck to kill the bull. Only one bullfighter has ever died in Ronda; when that occurred in 1820, he was buried on the exact spot where he died. After the matador kills the bull, it is dragged by mules to the small courtyard outside the chapel where it is hung, skinned and quartered for subsequent sale to restaurants!

The Presidential Box, for the exclusive use of the Royal Family, was above the gate where the bulls entered the ring. The arena's capacity for 4,750 people made it the largest in the world.

It was so much fun yelling a pretend 'Ole' with no one else in the ring, and especially no bulls! The sand was a local variety known to have excellent drainage properties, i.e. for the bulls' blood!

All the seats were covered by the oldest known conifer species of fir wood which was only available in the Ronda mountain range.

In 1810, when much of Spain was controlled by Napoleon, the arena was used as a barracks. During the 1936-1939 Spanish Civil War, it was variously used as a concentration camp, for vehicle storage, a boxing ring and as a stage for popular shows. 

We walked along the hallway and into the small spaces where the bulls were penned up before they entered the ring. Ropes and pulleys safely opened up the right door at the right time.

I know it's hard to gain a decent perspective of the space from this photo but it seemed extraordinarily tight to me for an animal the size of a bull.

We climbed a staircase to see the picadero or paddock for the bulls.

The only animals we saw the couple of hours we were at the bullring were in the Equestrian School where 30 Spanish thoroughbreds train. It was the location of the first riding school in 1804.

It was easy to understand the conflict between the frequent debate about banning bullfighting and the increasing lucrativeness of bullfighting since it was professionalized. I was really glad to tour the excellent museum and the bullring since it was something we'd never experienced before. I admit to being of two minds about wanting to attend a bullfight as I could now understand the art and, likely, the majesty of the fight; however, knowing the ultimate goal is only to kill the bull, that leaves me upset about the defenseless animal who's only bred for one fight and to die at the hands, literally, of the matador.

Wanting and definitely needing a change of scene after that, we made our way across the New Bridge into the Old Town for more views of the spectacular gorge as we still hadn't had our fill after seeing it and the valley just yesterday afternoon after our arrival in Ronda.

I could understand Washington Irving's sentiments when he wrote about the town's white houses on the bank of the ravine when he visited Ronda in 1828.

Much as we admired the pretty building and balconies, we decided to give the Lara Museum a pass after reading it contained torture devices from the Inquisition and displays on local witchcraft!

The Minaret of San Sebastian belonged to a small 14th century mosque. After the Christian conquest, it was converted into the Church of San Sebastian. The only part that still remained was the minaret which had been converted into a bell tower. 

Further along was the 15th century Church of Santa Maria la Mayor that shared  an attractive square with orange trees and City Hall. It was built on and around the remains of Moorish Ronda's main mosque, which had itself been constructed on the site of a temple to Julius Caesar. The minaret had been finished off by a balcony but was subsequently crowned by a belfry.

In the entrance way, the only surviving mosque prayer niche faced not Mecca as would be the norm in any mosque, but Gibraltar where one would have to travel to get to Mecca. 

The magnificent baroque Altar del Sagrario with its statue of the Immaculate Conception in the middle, was built on site and gilded in 1773

According to Steves, the town's artistic highlight was this big fresco of St. Christopher with Baby Jesus on his shoulders as it showed the former patron saint both of Ronda and of travelers. In 1954, Our Lady of Peace was crowned as the new saint.

Still visible in the church were Arab calligraphy and stylized plant motifs.

Steven and I found the elaborately carved choir with its series of bronze modern reliefs depicting scenes from the life of Mary to be the most compelling item we'd seen in a Spanish church for a long time. It was hard to believe the 14 stations were only completed in 2000 as it seemed so much older than that. Situated in the middle of the church, the purpose of the Marian Way of Light, similar to the Way of the Cross, served as a worship aid for devout Catholics.

The centerpiece was Mary, the Queen of the Family, and the light of the world with the moon, stars and sun around her. 

The church's tiny windows provided ventilation. Some of the 17th and 18th century icons were from Greece. The red chairs were nearly thrown away but a thorough restoration meant they could be used in the church after all.

What a pleasant view we had of the City Hall and park out front. 

Another lovely altar:

From the other side of the choir, we saw the Renaissance section of the church with its very tall nave so different from the Baroque section at the front of the church. It was as close to having two churches in one space as I'd ever seen before.

The 10-meter high and 3.5-meter in diameter, three-tiered, silver-plated chandelier was unveiled at the end of the 20th century. Its garlands had a staggering 24,700 crystals!

This section of the church had very graceful arches which reminded me of those we'd recently seen in Cordoba's Mezquita.

The Treasury displayed vestments that looked very much like matadors' brocaded outfits, possibly intentional and appropriate in the bullfight crazy town of Ronda! In the display case was the head of Christ kept on the nightstand belonging to master bullfighter Ordonez until he donated it to the church.

We climbed the narrow stairs to get some wonderful views of  the town and environs. At the top we really had a sense why Ronda was called one of the most beautiful of Spain's white hill towns.

Another glimpse of City Hall, again visible in the center right of the photo.

In the distance we could see the scenic hills surrounding Ronda.

Didn't the former minaret and now bell tower remind you of a crown?

The church's 15th century crypt was now an exhibit hall with ancient religious texts and an unusual and unsettling display of ceramic angels on a bed of white roses.

Nearby, the Mondragon Palace was originally a Moorish building erected in the 14th century as the legendary residence of Moorish kings. 

Our walk back through more of the Old Town couldn't have been prettier with flowers and vines adorning buildings, attractive car-free squares, beautiful wrought-iron balconies and fascinating doorways.

Next post: Bypassing the Do Not Pass sign to see the ravine up close!

Posted on February 11th, 2019, from Littleton, Colorado.