MONASTERY OF SAN MARTIÑO DE XUVIA

Situated on the seaside and known as the monastery of O Couto. There is talk of a possible monastery from the Germanic age on which, in the 12th century, and under the patronage of the noble family of the Traba, the monastery was founded. It was dependent on the French abbey of Cluny and since 1518 St.Martin of Valladolid.

The current temple retains a major part of its Romanesque traces and it is one of the most important not only in the area of Ferrol, but also in the province of A Coruña. It has a layout with three naves separated by columns with carved capitals, one of them with a unique scene of a combat between knights. Its apse is triple and it stands out for its symmetry and its decorated corbels, some of them with erotic scenes. Over the course of time it has undergone different remodelling phases, some owing to fires such as the one suffered in 1337 which affected the monastic outbuildings. The bell tower and the portico are 18th century works.

It was an important, prestigious place which is why the nobility of the area chose to be buried in its temple. In its interior there is a sarcophagus from the Esquío family and to which Fernand´Esquío belonged, a poet from the latest school of Galician-Portuguese troubadours from the late 13th century.

Father Sarmiento spent the night at this monastery in 1745. Outside its atrium there is a field with banana trees, a modern transept and a religious image on a high pedestal.