The renovation of the gilding and polychromy of the main altarpiece of its church, which had been hidden under a thick layer of dust and dirt, has attracted all eyes this Thursday in San Martín del Río. The residents of this small town in Teruel have made a pilgrimage to its church to be able to contemplate with their own eyes the new face of this complex of great historical-artistic value.
The main altarpiece of the Parish Church of San Martín shines again in all its splendor after concluding a restoration process in which the Department of Presidency, Justice, Culture and Sport of the Government of Aragon has invested more than 127,000 euros. «It is a very important and very significant work for the province of Teruel and for Aragon. This strong investment has been to value our history and our heritage,» said the general director of Culture of the
It is precisely the great historical-artistic value of the altarpiece and the deficiencies that its state of conservation presented (abundant surface dirt, occasional losses in polychrome and gilding, darkening and yellowing of varnishes, small volumetric faults, damp stains and areas of wear on the base) that led to the in 2021 the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage commissioned the conservator-restorer Covadonga Menéndez Zapata to draft the project for its restoration.
«The altarpiece of San Martín has gone through a very intense restoration process that has restored its polychromy, splendour, brilliance and luminosity. The richness of the altarpiece allows us to understand the relevance and history of the municipality,» said Olloqui in an event that was also attended by the president of the Cortes de Aragón, María Navarro, and the president of the Provincial Council of Teruel, Joaquín Juste.
A JEWEL IN THE HEART OF JILOCA
It is a large altarpiece, which exceeds 13 meters in height and 8 meters in width, which appears articulated in a base, basement, bench and two bodies of three streets and two mezzanines each plus an attic also of three streets. Only the base is made of stone and shows the inscription «YEAR 1739», corresponding to the moment when the altarpiece was reassembled after its dismantling to proceed with the total redecoration of the interior of the temple.
According to the preserved historical documentation, studied by Professor Ernesto Arce Oliva, this Romanist altarpiece, which uses a classicist language inspired by the Roman art of the full Renaissance, was made by the sculptor Juan Miguel Orliens and his brother-in-law Juan de Acurio between 1613-1615, and gilded and polychromed by Mateo Viñas and Joseph Pérez between 1677 and 1678.
In this regard, the historian Jesús Criado has detailed that in the study of the work it has been discovered that the polychromy of the altarpiece was made by Mateo Viñas, a painter from Zaragoza, from 1675, although he died without finishing it and Joseph Pérez, from Daroca, finished it.
