December 28, 2007: Spanish Carving

[xoxoxoBruce]

This is the dude.

Ieronimus is the Latin name of Don Jerónimo de Perigueux (1060? -1120), one of the most famous Spanish bishops of French origin and was a key figure in the Reconquest of Spain; he was also the chaplain of El Cid Campeador and bishop of Valencia; he was named bishop of Salamanca when the Diocese was restored in 1102, in the times of its Christian repopulation made by the Count Raimundo de Borgoña and doña Urraca.

Heavy, huh?

This is the cathedral he had built in 1102 AD. Well actually it was started in 1102, but it took a couple hundred years to build. That's understandable seeing all the intricate stone carving on the facade.


Hey, wait a minute. How come a church built in the 12th/13th centuries, has a carving of a NASA Astronaut?

[busterb]

Hey, wait a minute. How come a church built in the 12th/13th centuries, has a carving of a NASA Astronaut?

To use one of your world famous quotes, "Damifino."

[xoxoxoBruce]

At first I thought it might be a pioneer deep sea diver, but they sure look like moon boots to me.

[Rusty Mail]

I'd say it's shopped. I can can see artifacts around the suit, and carvings have a higher contrast than the suit.

[LJ]

yeah.....wow... wouldnt we have hear about that before if it were real? did you check snopes? i looked briefly.....but didnt get any hits.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Whoops, it seems that carving is on the New Cathedral, which is adjacent to and built to shore up, the Old Cathedral. The New Cathedral wasn't started until about 1550 AD, and took a couple hundred years also.
But the fact remains, that Astronaut was carved before the American revolution, at the latest.

Look here.

Or here

[LJ]

so....time travel? the true vision of a psychic sculptor? both of which seem more likely than coincidence.

anyway....i like it. but then, sometimes, i think we came from off world. and started anew along side the neanderthals......


good pic. bruce

[tulzscha]

To quote one of Bruce's links:

"Probably just a modern addition by the mischievous restoration team."

Seconded, with Occam's-razory emphasis. 'Cuz it's unambiguously an astronaut, and there ain't no such thing as time travel. It's also definitely in much newer stone, you can see the weathering of the block directly above it...

[fdisk]

http://www.spain.info/TourSpain/Dest...tm?Language=en

Visiting the Cathedral becomes a game for all the family with the "Ieronimus" exhibition. You can explore every corner of the building and go to the top of the medieval tower to enjoy stunning views of the city. Once on the ground again, there is more fun to be had at the Puerta de Ramos doorway: look for the modern figures that restorers introduced in the lower part to replace statues that were in bad condition. To pass the test you have to find a stork, an astronaut and a monkey eating an ice cream.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Ah, so that's where it came from.

Welcome to the Cellar, Fdisk.

[Grismar]

Originally Posted by Rusty Mail

I'd say it's shopped. I can can see artifacts around the suit, and carvings have a higher contrast than the suit.

I love these comments. They put most of the "it's shopped, I'm certain" posts in threads that don't get resolved as conclusively as this one into proper perspective.

Besides, just seeing artifacts doesn't mean it's shopped of course. Could just be a shabby case of jpeg optimization or even just mistaking shadows for something else. (face on mars, anyone?)

Greetings, Grismar.

[Ibram]

either way, I'm not gonna go find it for you this time.

[jano]

My wife is from Germany. I have been to the Big church in Cologne several times. It is still a work in progress. I have seen workmen replace the carvings and clean them. They do not last forever especially in that part of the world. Heat, cold, rain, snow, erode the carvings over time and they need to be replaced.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Welcome to the Cellar, Jano.

I didn't know those small carvings could be removed, like the big Gargoyles and statues.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Originally Posted by Grismar

Besides, just seeing artifacts doesn't mean it's shopped of course. Could just be a shabby case of jpeg optimization or even just mistaking shadows for something else. (face on mars, anyone?)

Right you are. It's almost impossible to find a photo on the web that hasn't be altered/resized/compressed, in some way.