12.- Monastery of Santa María la Real of Obona The first references to this monastery date from the 8th century. although in its current configuration it is presented as a 13th century work with important reforms and extensions of the Baroque period. The tradition indicates that the foundation of the monastery dates back to the year 780 and is linked to the figure of Aldegaster. supposed bastard son of King Silo. However. the great promoter of the temple was Alfonso IX. who in 1222 established the passage by Obona as mandatory for pilgrims of the Way of Saint James. The Romanesque church has a large arched doorway with archivolts. Over the roof there are two lintelled windows superimposed on two levels. finished off with a great triple hollow bell gable crowned by an iron cross. Inside. the temple has a nave and two aisles ending in the apse. Presiding over the temple there is a great crucified Christ. suspended from the ceiling. from the Romanesque period. From the church you can access the cloister. from 1659. which was never finished and was based on the succession of Tuscan columns and semi-circular arches on the ground floor. with windows on the upper level. From the outside. the cloister is accessed through a door located to the right of the portal of the church. The cloister has a ground floor with two semi-circular arches and an upper floor with two latticed windows between which the shields of Castile and Leon and a niche with the image of San Benito are arranged. The monastery of Obona was declared a Cultural Interest Site in 1982.