Ermita de San Jorge

Ermita de San Jorge is an abandoned hermitage tucked into the Dehesa de los Mogollones countryside outside Cáceres, remembered mainly for the 16th-century wall paintings still clinging to its interior. It's a ruin today, but it remains a draw for anyone interested in old religious art or in walking the open dehesa landscape of Extremadura.

Where is it and how do you get there?

The chapel sits off the beaten path, on private land along the road from Cáceres toward Badajoz, near the entrance to a local ecopark. The clearest landmark is the neighbouring Mogollones castle tower, a ruined medieval fortification right next to the hermitage. Getting there means walking in along an old drovers' track, and the site isn't signposted, so it's easy to miss. The route crosses open dehesa dotted with cork and holm oaks, passes the Salor river valley with its medieval bridge, mill and weir, and runs close to the La Hijadilla dolmen, a prehistoric megalithic tomb. Griffon vultures are a common sight overhead, and storks nest along the riverbanks.

Where does the hermitage come from?

The building went up in the 14th century as a private chapel attached to the Mogollones estate, founded by Diego García de Ulloa. The property later passed to Catalina de Ulloa Torres, lady of Mogollones, whose family appears in 16th-century estate records. Its construction is unusual: it was built over a natural depression that held groundwater, with the interior carried on four heavy arches of granite blocks. A single nave leads straight to a raised choir, and inside there's still an artificial pool whose original purpose is unclear — it may have had a ritual function.

What do the murals show?

The chapel's real draw is the fresco cycle covering its walls and vault, signed by the painter Juan de Ribera, who worked in the Cáceres diocese in the second half of the 16th century. His signature and the date 1565 survive on a small column. The scenes cover Old Testament and Gospel episodes: Abraham receiving the angels at Mamre, Isaac blessing Jacob, the Annunciation, Christ praying in the Garden of Olives, the Baptism, the Descent from the Cross, a Pietà, and the stigmata of Saint Francis. Lower on the walls are figures of saints, among them Lucy, Barbara, James dressed as a pilgrim, and Luke the Evangelist, while the vault carries God the Father with the four Church Fathers. Latin inscriptions tied to biblical passages run through the decoration.

What condition is it in today?

The hermitage has been decaying for decades — the walls show serious structural damage, and the exposed frescoes suffer from damp, sun and vandalism. The solid stone construction has so far kept it from collapsing outright, but its status as private property has made conservation work difficult to organise. A fire reached the surroundings of the chapel in 2015 without seriously damaging the structure itself, and local conservation groups have flagged the site's ongoing deterioration to regional authorities. A year earlier, the Extremadura regional government opened a process to add the hermitage to the region's historical and cultural heritage inventory, a step toward eventual restoration and public access.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Ermita de San Jorge? A 14th-century private chapel from the old Mogollones estate near Cáceres, known for the 16th-century frescoes painted by Juan de Ribera.

Can visitors go inside? The site is on private land and in ruinous condition, with no visitor facilities — reaching it means walking in along a dirt track and taking care once there.

What's worth seeing inside? Frescoes from 1565 depicting biblical scenes and saints, plus an unusual artificial pool built into the chapel itself.

Are there other sights nearby? Yes — the adjoining Mogollones castle tower, the Salor river valley with its old bridge and mill, and the La Hijadilla megalithic dolmen.