Villasilos

Described and partially illustrated in Bilbao (1996) as a baptismal font of the Romanesque period ornamented with an interesting representation of the martyrdom of St. Andrew surrounded by flames and with a Sun bearing a human face]. The entry for this village in Emiliano Nebreda Perdiguero [www.archiburgos.es/wp-content/uploads/amo-a-mi-pueblo.pdf] [accessed February 2023] notes: "Su iglesia está dedicada a San Andrés, apóstol, y es renacentista [...] La pila es renacentista, con bolas, hojas y llamas en relieve y pie cilíndrico". As expected, given its late date, there is no entry for this church in the Enciclopedia del románico [https://www.romanicodigital.com]. On-site notes: the basin has a thick roll moulding at the upper rim and a row of ball motif below it; the basin sides show the representation of the martyrdom of St Andrew, patron saint of the church at Villasilos: Andrew appears in the middle of the scene, his head framed in a shell, as if a halo, and carrying the saltire cross in his hands; to the right of the Apostle is a Sun with a human face; to the left an unidentifiable male figure, [perhaps an angel?]; all three figures are involved in flames; metal staples from the old cover are still evident in the upper rim; the round pedestal base is plain and very worn. No cover present.