San Miguel de Lillo

The building we can see today corresponds to approximately one third of the original construction. During the late Middle Ages, the church collapsed in part and the present-day chancel was rebuilt, and today the original portico and one of the original nave sections are still standing. Today, the original portico and one of the sections of the original nave are still standing. On the outside, the walls are surrounded by buttresses and openings in them are decorated with fully worked stone latticework. Of all the latticework in the monument, four original ones have survived.

The interior is divided into three naves, which are separated for the first time by tall columns instead of pillars. The columns rest on bases decorated with the symbols of the evangelists. The large capitals supporting the arches are decorated with Byzantine and North African motifs. At the foot of the nave, above the old portico, is a tribune. It is accessed through an opening decorated with marble pilasters, up narrow stone steps.

In the tribune there are four arches, which correspond to as many doors, decorated with motifs in the Visigothic tradition. The entire interior is vaulted and above the part of the vault that covers the tribune there is an inaccessible compartment, lit from the outside by a circular lattice, which gives the building a great slenderness. Together with Santa María del Naranco they make up what is known as the Naranco Pre-Romanesque.

It can be reached on foot along a 150-metre path (from the car park), which can be reached from Oviedo/Uviéu along the Naranco road (towards Ules). Guided tours depart from Santa María del Naranco. Bus line A2 (stop Prerrománico). Limited seating. Card payment available.