attributed now to Van Dyck, now to Murillo; it represents Christ in the
arms of his mother, and Mary Magdalene weeping on her knees beside the
principal group. The picture is known by the name of Piety or La Piedad.

The high altar, instead of being placed to the east of the transept, as
is generally the case, is set beneath the _croisee_, in the circular
area formed by the intersection of nave and transept. The view of the
interior is therefore completely obstructed, no matter where the
spectator stands.

VIII

UPPER RIOJA

To the south of Navarra and about a hundred miles to the west of Burgos,
the Ebro River flows through a fertile vale called the Rioja, famous for
its claret. It is little frequented by strangers or tourists, and yet it
is well worth a visit. The train runs down the Ebro valley from Miranda
to Saragosse. A hilly country to the north and south, well wooded and
gently sloping like the Jura; nearer, and along the banks of the stream,
_huertas_ or orchards, gardens, and vineyards offer a pleasant contrast
to the distant landscape, and produce a favourable impression,
especially when a village or town with its square, massive church-tower
peeps forth from out of the foliage of fruit-trees and elms.

Such is Upper Rioja--one of the prettiest spots in Spain, the Touraine,
one might almost say, of Iberia, a circular region of about twenty-five
miles in radius, containing four cities, Logrono, Santo Domingo de la
Calzada, Najera, and Calahorra.

The Roman military road from Tarragon to Astorga passed through the
Rioja, and Calahorra, a Celtiberian stronghold slightly to the south,
was conquered by the invaders after as sturdy a resistance as that of
Numantia itself. It was not totally destroyed by the conquering Romans
as happened in the last named town; on the contrary, it grew to be the
most important fortress between Leon and Saragosse.

When the Christian religion dawned in the West, two youths, inseparable
brothers, and soldiers in the seventh legion stationed in Leon, embraced
the true religion and migrated to Calahorra. They were beheaded after
being submitted to a series of the most frightful tortures, and their
tunics, leaving the bodies from which life had escaped, soared skywards
with the saintly souls, to the great astonishment of the Roman
spectators. The names of these two martyr saints were Emeterio and
Celedonio, who, as we have seen, are worshipped in Santander; besides,
the