San Juan de la Peña Monastery

In Jaca, Aragón, San Juan de la Peña Monastery is an important monastery associated with Christianity and with the historical development of its region. A major sacred and royal site of medieval Aragón, with its Old Monastery built beneath a vast rock overhang. The Old Monastery grew from an early hermitage and a lower church consecrated in 920.

Sancho III the Great promoted a renewed monastic centre in 1025, and the complex was enlarged with Romanesque work in the 11th and 12th centuries. After later fires, a New Monastery was developed on the plateau above from the late 17th century. Architecturally, the site is characterised by pre-romanesque and romanesque monastic architecture; later baroque complex.

Major medieval Aragonese monastery and royal pantheon dramatically built beneath a rock overhang. Religious use and pilgrimage at the site include Christian prayer and heritage pilgrimage. Because worship, ceremonies and heritage visits can overlap, visitors should consult the official institution or the cited public authority for current access, service and visiting arrangements.