It is thought to have been founded by Alphonse I and it was declared a Historic Artistic Monument in 1907. It was occupied by monks until 1835, when they abandoned it after their property was disentailed. The monastery and church were not permitted to be sold.
The most interesting feature of the monumental building is without doubt the church, which conserves some fine examples of Romanic architecture, although it has been subject to major reforms.
At some point, the church probably had three naves, but during the 17th C the number was reduced to one and the construction of the solid tower during the same century, caused a great deal of damage to the attractive portal.
The existing nave is divided up into three sections by bow arches and the vault is polychromed, with paintings dating from the 18th C.
The head of the church is formed by a triple, semicircular apse that is higher in the central part, with barrel vaults at the rectangular sections and four sphere vaults in the semicircular sections.
Another gateway existed leading from the cloister to the church, but it is has now been closed off. However, it still has the two capitals one on each side of the four it originally had. That portal appears to have been built later than the one already described. One of the most interesting features in the Monastry was the Baptismal Font, which is now exhibited in the National Archaeological Museum. The Monastery is currently occupied by the Parador Nacional of Cangas de Onís.
Chapel of San Bartolomé
The chapel dates from the 12th-13th C. It was once a leper asylum, related to the former Pilgrims Hospital of Cangas de Onís. It is built in a Roman style and still conserves the portal, with a plain archivolt that rests on imposts and joists.
