Horreos
When we left Fisterra, we white-roaded our way back so we could drive through the twin towns of Lira & Carnota. I wanted to see the dualing Horreos.
Horreos are unusual and unique in Spain to Galicia. They are graineries made of stone and stand on stilts to keep rats from getting to the stores. The design has unusual louvered slats (also of stone) that allow air to circulate but keep rain out. Every home has its own horreo.
In many areas the size of the horreo was an indication of your prosperity. A family with an 8 ft long horreo was middle class.
the reason the two towns of Lira & Canota have these ridiculously long 35 foot horreos was because the two bishops in these towns were in competition. The horreos are both in the churchyards.
Horreos are a source of exteme regional pride in Galicia. I don’t know if there is legislation to protect them, or if their protection is through cultural tradition. But, as you can tell from the picture below, Galicians go to great lengths to preserve the Horreo.
Interesting. I visited Galicia in 1980 and never saw a hórreo. We had a toddler in tow and maybe that’s why we never saw them. We’re planning a trip to Andalucia this fall and hopefully we’ll make it back to Galicia the following year.
They are fascinating! They look more like little chapels than grainaries.
Deborah responds: I know what you mean. The cross on the top was a talisman to keep the grains stored inside from rotting.
Most of them are now used as storage sheds, but I did find some in Portugal that still had grain in them. When I get to that part of the trip, I have some closeup pictures to post.