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The Tympanum in Conques- slightly comical, an education

shefollowsshells

Veteran Member
Time of past OR future Camino
Several alone and with children
Recently I shared a thread about beautiful Conques and the monk playing the House of the Rising Sun on the organ. Conques gave us many memories, a monk offering us to sleep in the garden behind the monetary and bringing us leftovers of the dinner served. One of the best conversations in the church's pew, with a fellow pilgrim who we loved, who walked with cancer and has since passed...
I share this for those considering Le Puy...make sure to look up at the Tympanum of the church and try your hardest to get a tour of the church and at least stand through an education of the Tympanum. My son just had an art project due for high school, he got to pick his art piece and he chose this Tympanum which has some humor. We've been pronouncing Tympanum incorrectly and have since learned it is /Tim/ and not /Ti/...
This link is not public but thought I would share it with Camino lovers...
 
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Camino Way markers in Bronze
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Neve,
Thanks for sharing the Conques video; it brings back happy memories of easier times. For those who love Romanesque architecture/historic restoration to stay at the Abbey of Saint Foy/ Abbatiale Sainte-Foy, Conques, and slowly visit these structures is always an unforgettable experience.
 
shefollowsshells said:
Tympanum
Click to expand...

Tym'pa'num (architecture and anatomy, plural tympana) and Tim'pa'ni (the large percussion instruments in symphony orchestras) come from the same Latin and Greek roots for drum.

In architecture we normally only see a semi-circle, as at Conques and, later, at Moissac. And, of course, at Barcelona and so many other places.

While the west end of a church, above the entrance, is the most common location, tympanum can also be seen on significant side entrances, typically on the (liturgical) south side.

The purpose of the images is often to show the key actor(s) from books of the bible. In this form they could become an aide in instruction.

In Spain this teaching function can often be found in small chapels and grand cathedral and abbey churches and take the form of large screens behind the main altar with many coloured images being shown.
 
Camino Jewellery
A selection of Camino Jewellery
Congratulations on your son’s excellent exposition of the tympanum at Conques. A credit to his home schooling and what an education to walk from Le Puy to Santiago.
 
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