The Church of Santa María de Bareyo, built in the late 12th to early 13th century, is considered the most beautiful and monumental example of coastal Romanesque architecture in Cantabria. It stands on a hilltop overlooking the Trasmiera coast, next to a centuries-old oak tree.
The interior apse is the masterpiece: two superimposed horizontal tiers lined with Romanesque arcades of round arches—five blind arches below and seven above, three of them stilted—with capitals featuring human heads, plant motifs and biblical scenes of Adam and Eve.
The baptismal font is another exceptional treasure: a large quadrilobate monolithic basin (1.42 m per side) resting on a base with two lions biting a human arm placed over a male head. It is regarded as the finest Romanesque baptismal font in the Cantabrian mountains.
Declared a Cultural Heritage Asset (Monument) in 1978, the church sits at a crossroads on the Camino Lebaniego pilgrimage route to Santo Toribio de Liébana.
Open Tuesday to Sunday (10:30-13:30 and 16:00-19:30). Free entry with voluntary donation. Sunday mass at 12:00.
