On 25th of May 2005, in the monastery of Yuso, the Augustinian Recollects signed a contract with two Foundations; the Caja de Madrid and the Fundacion San Millan. The contract was for the complete restoration of the Church of the Assumption with a budget of 4.6 million euros. Each Foundation would give 2 million and the Province of St. Joseph the remaining 600 thousand. The work began in November 2007 and finished in January 2011.
The complete restoration of the Church of the Assumption has solved the many conservation problems that affected both the material and structural fabric not to mention the aesthetical value and expressive capability. The damage caused by humidity was really serious.
In 2003 and 2004 restoration work was undertaken on the arches of the central nave and the ceiling/roof of the church. The present work ( 2007-2011) has consisted in draining the perimeter of the outside of the church, draining and restoring the floor of the building, getting rid of the cement revestment of the pillars of the central nave added over many years, the complete overhauling and restoration of the tracery and arches of the side aisles and the high windows in the transept, and the retiling of some of the roof. The altarpiece (retablo), the pulpits, the ironwork, the side entrances, the porch for the main entrance, the arches below the main choir loft, the frescos in the chapels of St. Augustine, Montserrat, the Relics and the parish chapel have also been cleaned and restored.
In 2003 and 2004 restoration work was undertaken on the arches of the central nave and the ceiling/roof of the church. The whole restoration work of this very important Project has been made known far and wide. Since 2007 educational workshops on architecture, scenery/landscape, conservation of property and archaeology have allowed more than 3600 students from many colleges and schools to find out, close up, about restoration work. Special lessons were given in the monastery church itself.
Reopening
Tuesday 25 of January will see the presentation of the totally restored Church of the Assumption to the national press. It will once again be used as the parish Church for the people of San Millán de la Cogolla and a guided tour made available. Immediately after that the bishop of the diocese, Juan José Omella, will preside the first Eucharist in this glorious temple which has recovered it’s ancient splendour.
The Prior General and the Vicar General of the Order of Augustinian Recollects have come from Rome for the opening. The regional government of La Rioja will be represented by its president, Pedro Sanz, and the counsellor for Education, Culture and Sports. Also present will be the general director of Culture and coordinator of the Fundación San Millán. Rodrigo Rato, president of the Caja de Madrid and the director of the Fundación Caja Madrid will also be present. The director of the department for the Conservation of Spanish Heritage will be present.
A major difficulty arose with the discovery of the ruins of the ancient romanic monastery dating from 1067. What to do? Cover up the remains or not or not. It was thought the archaeological work would take a few months. In the end it took nearly two years.
The Church was one big cemetery. From its first consecration in the 11th century to near the end of the 19th it was used as a burial site. Thousands of skeletons appeared. They were all exhumed and cremated. The present community has celebrated a service and returned the ashes to the Church where the bones had been found.
The archaeological work has also contributed to discoveries of immense transcendence for the history of art. It is the first time there has been an excavation of this kind of a church complex. Up until now there had been only small trial excavations. We are probably speaking of the first great church of the Spanish Romanic style, earlier even than the Cathedral of Jaca, though we have to wait to know the definitive opinion of the experts. The budget was to include work on the Church tower but the archaeological work ate up the budget.
Other works
The restoration of the Refectory (the monastic dining room) is well advanced. Here the religious community has been able to count on the Ferrovial company to finance the project to the tune of one half million euros.
Last year the new interior and exterior lighting for the Monastery of Yuso was lit and had a main contributor in the Iberdrola Foundation. They gave one hundred thousand euros.
The number of visitors has increased, as have the jobs to be done, The Augustinian Recollects welcome each and everyone who comes. The Augustinian Recollects calculate that, to date, the Regional Government of La Rioja has invested nearly 16 million euros in the monastery
A living monastery
The task of preserving this monastery for Humanity began back in 1878 when three Augustinian Recollect friars arrived in the valley of San Millan to take charge of the monastery of Yuso. The building they found then, a heap of ruins, is now in the past. Today the Monastery of Yuso has a life of its own, epitomised by the religious friars who live there. Starting in 1997 when UNESCO declared the monastic complex of Suso and Yuso be a World Heritage Site, the tasks of the community have multiplied. The number of visitors has increased, as have the jobs to be done.
The Augustinian Recollects welcome each and everyone who comes: the pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago, the studious who delve into the roots of the Spanish language or the Basque one, or restless spirits seeking a place of peace in the House of Spirituality. Or tourists from all over the world in search of the beauty and culture kept safe by these religious men.