Santa Eulàlia d'Erill la Vall and the Centre del Romànic

Santa Eulàlia is the Romanesque church of Erill la Vall, a small village at the entrance to the Boí valley. Next door, on carrer del Batalló, the Centre del Romànic explains the ensemble: it has reopened with immersive rooms and is the place to buy the joint ticket and ask for guided visits. It is a good first step before seeing the other churches.

Hours and admission

In November and December, the church is open Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 14:00 and from 16:00 to 19:00 and on Sunday morning, from 10:00 to 14:00; on Sundays 6 and 27 December it also opens in the afternoon. It is closed on 25 December and on the afternoons of the 24th and 31st. Admission, €3; €2 for groups of 15 or more and schoolchildren. Children up to age 10, accompanied, do not pay.

The Centre del Romànic is open all year from 10:00 to 14:00 and from 16:00 to 19:00, except 1 and 6 January, 25 December and the afternoons of the 24th and 31st. Admission costs €5 and the rooms are visited in sessions at fixed times: buy on the booking website, because capacity is limited, and arrive on time, as 15 minutes after your time they do not let you in. The experience is for over-8s. They can be reached on 973 696 715. Guided visits to the churches run all year by appointment, in Catalan, Spanish, French and English.

The centre

The new exhibition tells the story of the territory, its people and the churches from the eleventh century to today, with immersive resources and a virtual reality experience: how the valley's churches were conceived, built and paid for, how the first scholars of Romanesque studied them and how their value has changed over time. If you have little time in the valley, start here.

The church

Erill la Vall appears in a document of 1064, when the counts of Pallars Sobirà sold it, with its church, to those of Pallars Jussà. Santa Eulàlia was built in four phases between the eleventh and twelfth centuries. It has a single very elongated nave and a three-apse cloverleaf head, rebuilt to its original layout in the 1994-1997 restoration. The bell tower, of six storeys with Lombard decoration and paired windows, is aligned with those of Sant Joan de Boí and Sant Climent de Taüll, which allowed communication from one end of the valley to the other. On the north porch there are traces of red paint and a serpent engraved in the mortar.

Inside is the piece most people remember: the Descent from the Cross, seven carved figures from the twelfth century, of white poplar except for the Christ, of walnut. It is the only complete group preserved from the Erill workshop. The originals are divided between the MNAC and the Museu Episcopal de Vic; what you see in the church is a copy.

How to fit it in

Erill la Vall is on the road that climbs to Boí and Taüll, so it is on your way. From here, Santa Maria de Taüll is the free-entry church that remains open this winter in Taüll. For more information about the valley, the Tourist Office is in Barruera.