sebastián arquitectos restores old hermitage along the camino de santiago

reviving a forgotten refuge

an old stone chapel in the abandoned spanish village of ruesta is the subject of this latest restoration project by sebastián arquitectos. situated along the aragonés route of the famous camino de santiago pilgrimage, the hermitage of san juan de ruesta used to be home to a collection of 12th-century romanesque paintings. the artwork has since been removed and the religious building has been left to ruin.

when the zaragoza-based architects approached the project, only part of the original stone walls remained. the design team’s task was to breathe new life into the hermitage, restoring its function as a place for pilgrims to stop and rest on the road to santiago.

images by iñaki bergera photography

an abstract yet respectful intervention

the architects‘ main design intention was to recover the volume of the original hermitage of san juan de ruesta, which stands boldly against the trees that surround it. to restore the missing walls, sebastián arquitectos inserted a new volume made of light-colored stone. the stone blocks are laid in a uniform fashion, creating a pattern of horizontal lines and giving the new intervention a distinct, abstract expression. this new volume is also respectfully set back from the existing façades.

the new stone blocks are punctuated by tiny holes, echoing the small putlog holes in the existing apse. together with one slim window on the main elevation, these small openings create a shaded and dimly-lit environment inside, as the original chapel would have been like. they also turn the building into a gently glowing beacon when illuminated at night.

the architects inserted a new volume made of light-colored stone

stone roof slabs of the same color have been laid over the new walls. the team looked at old photos to make the new roof and roof eaves echo the position of the original.

other interventions from this restoration include a single path, which ramps down to the arched entrance of the hermitage. once inside, visitors will also see the exposed metal structure that supports the new stone walls and roof.

outside, stones from the collapsed structure are ordered in lines parallel to the path, leading pilgrims inside and hinting at the memory of the original hermitage of san juan de ruesta.

the design team looked at old photos to position the new roof