During your adventure on the Camino de Santiago, you will encounter many pilgrim friends, lush nature, rich historical heritage, and lots of local culture. In many towns and villages along the different routes, you will find plenty of rural architecture, and in this article, we will talk about one example of it, the hórreos, a typical construction found in some regions through which the Jacobean routes pass, especially in Galicia.
Typical Galician hórreos
What is a hórreo?
Hórreos are stone and/or wood constructions (sometimes even cement and brick), generally square or rectangular in shape, elevated or raised off the ground with ventilation in their walls, used as granaries or storage for food in general. Very connected to agricultural activity, they are generally the main feature in rural environments.
Many pilgrims, upon seeing these constructions for the first time, ask our guides: “What are those little houses?”
A hórreo
The term comes from the Latin word horreum, which refers to a granary for storing grain, field fruits, and other food. The need to store surplus food is very old, and already in the Cantigas of Alfonso X El Sabio (13th century), we can admire some miniatures where hórreos appear.
Not only is the name hórreo used, but since it exists in other regions of Spain and even other countries around the world, this type of construction may have other names: the Asturian panera, the Navarrese and Basque garaia, the Portuguese espigueiros, etc. In Galicia itself, it is known by different names depending on the area: hórreo, cabazo, canastro, cabaceiro, etc. From Japan, through Turkey, Switzerland, Germany, Sweden, etc., you can travel and find different forms of hórreos, each with its own name.
In any case, almost all of them are built in a more or less similar way, given the function they must fulfill, with ventilation and elevation being crucial, or at least being well separated from the ground, to avoid moisture and animals.
The Galician hórreo
The Galician hórreo is raised and separated from the ground by paired columns, generally starting with 2 or 3 pairs. At the top of these columns, there is a round piece that protrudes, preventing access to mice, ants, etc. From there, the beams begin to form a rectangular shape for the hórreo’s base, with walls that leave gaps for ventilation, and it is crowned with a gabled roof, often topped with a cross and another decoration, either lanceolate or round. It is usually made entirely of granite, although some are made of wood or a combination of both.
The Hórreo of Carnota
Depending on the size and material of the hórreo, it indicates whether the owning family is wealthier or not: the wealthier families would have carved granite hórreos, very long ones, while the poorer ones would have shorter, wooden ones. The longest hórreos in Galicia, built in granite, are those in Araño (Rianxo), Carnota, and Lira (Carnota), which easily exceed thirty meters in length.
On the Camino de Santiago
The Camino de Santiago, with its various routes, crosses several regions in Spain. You will always see hórreos in Galicia, as it is where all the routes converge. Outside of Galicia, you will find hórreos on the more northern routes, like the Camino del Norte, the Camino Primitivo, and the Camino Francés, where it is very common to find them in the countryside.
In the last 100 km of the Camino Francés, you can find a large number of hórreos in various types. The hórreo of Toxibó (Portomarín) is an example of a hórreo made of granite and wood, majestically rising at the foot of the path. In Leboreiro (Melide), in front of its Church of Santa María, you can find a very unique example of a hórreo, smaller and made with branches and small woods, typical in this area and among humble families. Approaching Arzúa, we will find a larger and rectangular type of hórreo, almost like a house, where the lower part would be used for livestock, and the upper part for storage.
The Hórreo of Toxibó
The Camino Inglés offers some examples of Galician hórreos, such as the one in Cruz (Ordes), a typical granite hórreo. In addition to it, in this place, you can admire a statue of Santiago Apostle and other more surreal ones, including dinosaurs.
On the Camino del Norte, before reaching the town of Markina and deviating the route towards Etxebarría (Vizcaya), you can admire a beautiful and old example of a Basque hórreo, the hórreo from the Ibargüen farmhouse. With stone supports, the rest of the construction is fine woodwork.
In the last 100 km of the Camino Primitivo, after passing the city of Lugo, the number of hórreos you will encounter will be overwhelming, with noticeable style changes as you approach Arzúa and merge with the Camino Francés.
A small hórreo in Lugo
In the last 100 km of the Camino Portugués, you will find many hórreos. In Ribadelouro, you can find one that is still used as a farm tool storage, often open, and pilgrims can observe its interior. Further ahead, in Pontesampaio, you will also find more examples of this construction. From Pontevedra, Caldas de Reis, and Padrón, they will be a constant throughout the way.
The Camino Sanabrés also shows examples found in the province of Ourense, such as in Oseira and its great monastery. And there are still many more before reaching Santiago de Compostela.
The Hórreo of Oseira
If you decide to walk the Camino de Finisterre and Muxía, you will find a large number of hórreos. When you arrive in Olveiroa (Dumbría), the hórreos will be the protagonists, perfectly integrated into this rural setting. And between Muxía and Fisterra, you should not miss admiring the hórreos of Lires, a small village that also boasts the majesty of these granaries. And although they are outside of this route, as they are very close, in Carnota, you can admire two of the longest hórreos in Galicia, those of Carnota and Lira, a true tribute to good harvests.
The Hórreo of Dumbría
A great way to learn more about Galician hórreos, see them, touch them, and perhaps talk to their owners, is by doing the Camino de Santiago, and you know that we will make it very easy for you.
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