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Beyond the castle hill and the walled old town, Atienza preserves in its municipal area four hermitages that mark the routes out of the village: Our Lady of the Star, Our Lady of Val, the Humilladero and Santa Lucía. Each has its own history, its own pilgrimage and an architectural value worth knowing.
Hermitage of Our Lady of the Star
The Estrella hermitage is the spiritual heart of La Caballada. It is about 3 km from Atienza along the Madrigal road. It is a square temple with an 18th-century Baroque altarpiece and a porch of sabina pillars that opens onto a brotherhood dining room —where every Pentecost Sunday the traditional cofrade meal is served—. Its wooded setting makes it a good picnic spot.
Hermitage of Our Lady of Val
The Val hermitage is the most artistically valuable of the four. It is north of the village, about 500 metres from the walled old town, and preserves a remarkable Romanesque portal from 1138 with a ten-figure archivolt —the most representative Romanesque ensemble of the Atienza area—. Its traditional pilgrimage gathers locals and brothers.
Hermitage of the Humilladero (or El Santo)
The Humilladero welcomes the traveller at the entrance of Atienza, at the junction of the CM-110 and the GU-134. It is the most accessible hermitage and around it there is a park with tables, swings and shade. It is the starting point of the Good Friday Procession of Silence, linked to Atienza's Holy Week.
Hermitage of Santa Lucía
Santa Lucía is 3 km from the village, beside the CM-1001 road. It is a 16th-century hermitage that once hosted La Caballada while the Estrella hermitage was being rebuilt. Today it keeps its constructive simplicity and a quiet setting, away from the bustle of the old town.
How to string the four hermitages together in a morning
The four hermitages can be comfortably visited by car in one morning. A good sequence: leave the old town towards the Humilladero (entrance of Atienza), then climb to Val (500 m from the old town), continue to the Estrella along the Madrigal road and close the circle at Santa Lucía. On foot, the castle climb plus a stretch of the “hermitages way” links the old town with Val.
