Jaca - Catedral de San Pedro

The Jaca Cathedral is one of the oldest of the Iberian peninsula, dating back to the 1070s. The building, which was altered many times later, was commissioned by King Sancho Ramírez, who established an episcopal seat in Jaca, then the capital of the Kingdom of Aragon.

The Romanesque cathedral was completed around 1130. In 1395 a blaze destroyed large parts of the cathedral. The ceiling had to be reconstructed in the following decades and got renovated in the 16th century when the aisles were added and the nave got enlarged.

I have been to Jaca a couple of times and have already uploaded dozens of photos taken here. So now only one capital, as over the years I got interested in this icon.

Balaam’s Donkey

Numbers 22

Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials. But God was very angry when he went, and the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, it turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat it to get it back on the road.

Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path through the vineyards, with walls on both sides. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam’s foot against it. So he beat the donkey again.

Then the angel of the Lord moved on ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn, either to the right or to the left. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it lay down under Balaam, and he was angry and beat it with his staff. Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?”

Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made a fool of me! If only I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now.”