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BIDARTE TOWER, PARK AND SAINT KURUTZ HERMITAGE

XVI - XVIII · Murga family´s baroque palace, park and little church.

Torre Bidarte

It is a baroque palace that hides a medieval tower, the Bidarte tower. On the ground floor, an access with large voussoirs presents in the main voussoir the shield of Bidarte – a tower with merlon – and on the shield an image of the Virgin. The ground and first floors are made of limestone ashlar masonry and the second is painted with floral decorations among which is – today illegible – the coat of arms of Murga, Montoya, Fernández de Ugarte y Aguirre. This palace is also known as the house of the Moro Vizcaíno (Biscayan Moor), José María Murga (1827-1876), a character who explored Morocco between 1862 and 1865 and author of the book Moroccan Memories of the Moro Vizcaíno. His memories and documents are stored there. With baroque spirit, it has a forest with various tree species and a little house that constitutes the natural complement of the palace.

Santa Cruz Hermitage

At the end of the meadow is Eliza Txiki or hermitage of Santo Cristo de Abesua. Also known under the invocation of the Holy Cross and documented in the sixteenth century. It is considered an old a shrine – a place with a cross or image at the entrance of the towns. Small in size, it stands out for its baroque wrought-iron grille and for a Romanesque-style Christ inside. It is associated with the palace that we will describe below.

Abesua kalea, 16
48270 Markina-Xemein

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Continue visit: Following monuments

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UHAGON CULTURAL CENTER

The Uhagón house, from the end of the 19th century and headquarters of the cultural center, offers an exhibition space, conference rooms and a cafeteria. In its extensive landscaped space, you can find the sculpture Poesia Bi by Lertxundi. On the other side of the bridge, at nº 5, Torre Barria (new tower) demonstrates the desire of the aristocracy to be close to the town. The size, although altered, keeps two arched entrances.

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GAYTAN DE AYALA´S PATROKUA PALACE

It has two clearly differentiated pieces: one neoclassical from the end of the 18th century and another historicist, from the beginning of the 20th century, inspired by Baroque constructions, and the work of Emiliano Amann, commissioned by the Gaytán de Ayala family. The two bodies have three heights and the connection between the two is made by means of a loggia or open solarium in three semicircular arches. The historicist block preserves a chestnut wood library and also has a small building attached to it. Now it is the headquarters of the Lea-Artibai Commonwealth.

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SCULPTURE DEDICATED TO JUAN ANTONIO MOGEL

In the gardens that surround this palace and that are part of the Lea-Artibai ikastetxea teaching center, there is the monument dedicated to Juan Antonio Moguel made by the sculptor Xiri Andonegi. Typographic forms in limestone reproduce a fragment of the work Peru Abarka written by Moguel that says: “The wolf prefers the wild life and the difficult search for the food to the pampering and the soft bread of the chained domestic dog.”