BRINGING HERITAGE CLOSER. THE BAZTAN VALLEY: MEN, ARCHITECTURE AND LANDSCAPE

21 September 2006

Indian art and architecture in the Baztan Valley. The 19th and 20th centuries
Dr. Javier Azanza López. Chair of Navarrese Art and Heritage.

The phenomenon of migration to America in the last third of the 19th century and the first third of the 20th century was intense in Navarre, although with differentiating nuances, it followed the general patterns of other regions such as Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria and the Basque Country. The northern valleys of Basaburúa, Ulzama, Aezkoa and Larráun, but above all the Atlantic Navarre concentrated in Baztán, Bertizarana and Cinco Villas, were the main departure points for numerous emigrants from Navarre during this period.

The profile of the emigrant from Baztan is that of a single man, aged between 20 and 25, a farmer and with little money programs of study, who went to America with the aim of "improving his fortune" goal . The departure platforms were mainly the ports of Pasajes and Bayonne, and to a lesser extent those of Bordeaux and San Sebastián. In terms of destinations, Argentina and Uruguay stand out above the rest, clearly distancing themselves from other options such as Mexico, Cuba or the Philippines.

The result of remembrance or of the return of the Americans to the Baztan is a rich urban and monumental bequest which becomes the best testimony to the prosperity achieved. The financing of religious architecture in parishes such as those of Errazu, Oronoz and Elizondo; the construction of stately homes and residences, either maintaining the local building tradition or in buildings of marked singularity as a testimony to the eclecticism of the period; the promotion or improvement of school buildings, among which the schools of San Martín and Nuestra Señora del Carmen in Oronoz stand out; the construction of facilities such as pelota courts and cemeteries; or public works and infrastructure, mainly focused on the network road, water supply and street lighting; all of them are examples of how American capital returned to the Valley and contributed to keeping the memory of its Indianos alive among the people.