Those who visit an area sometimes do not stop at certain places because they do not think they will be interesting or because they have no information on them. Something similar happens with the hamlet of Cereixo. Cereixo has an extraordinary historical and architectural heritage, which is often not given the consideration it deserves. As well as the parish church, the towers and the tide mill, the centre makes for an attractive architectural ensemble in an unparalleled setting on Costa da Morte.
The most notable historical building is the parish church of Santiago de Cereixo (dedicated to Saint James), a small Romanesque building whose original fabric has been well preserved. It has a rectangular nave and apse. The entrance is a half-point triumphal arch supported on engaged columns with capitals decorated with acanthus leaves.
Tts most outstanding feature can be found outside—the south door, a masterful piece in the purest Romanesque style. On the tympanum there is a depiction of a theme unique to Galician Romanesque—the transfer of the body of the Apostle James onto a boat, accompanied by seven of his disciples. The great merit of this stone image is the singular nature of the theme of the Translatio.
On looking in a westerly direction, you will see the top of the Torres de Cereixo building. In reality, this is a 17th century manor house that looks like a fortress, although there was a defensive building on this site previously. The original founders of this house came from the local nobility, the Calo and Carantoña families. Later on, they married families of a much higher rank, such as the Castro Villamarín and Lanzós Novoa, Counts of Maceda, the benefactors of the sanctuary of Nosa Señora da Barca (dedicated to the Virgin Mary) in Muxía. After the building had passed through the hands of various owners and became derelict, it was restored by the current owners and converted into a private home.
If you go down from the church to the river walk and continue on, you will come to the Arcea or Torres mill, the only building of this type that operated using the tidal waters of Costa da Morte. Its origins go back to 1647, when Juan Taboada Ribadeneira, lord of the Torres Cereixo manor house, granted a charter to the brothers Andrés and Pedro Espasante to build the mill in exchange for the payment of annual rent. After passing through various renters and owners, one of the latter converted it into a private home.
In the Cereixo Square, travellers will not fail to notice the centuries-old oak tree that shades the ground of this square with its huge canopy. It is a true natural monument worthy of admiration.
