San Pelaio baseliza

The hermitage of San Pelayo in Baquio is a Romanesque hermitage that is located on the road that, bordering the coast, joins Bakio with Bermeo.

Together with San Pedro de Abrisketa and Ermita de San Miguel de Zuméchaga it is one of the oldest Christian constructions preserved in the territory of Vizcaya. It is a small free-standing temple, probably dating from the 12th century, which maintains its original plan complete and intact, despite the passage of time and the various interventions.

Building of small dimensions, built in masonry, for the bottom of the walls and ashlar masonry in the corners. The upper part of the tower, which was modified, is plastered with mortar.

San Pelayo de Bakio has a single bay nave with a rectangular floor plan, as well as a square apse, smaller than the nave. The passage from the nave to the apse is made through a slightly pointed triumphal arch, double threaded and voussoired. The roof is gabled. At the foot of the church stands the tower with a skirted roof. Next to the apse is the sacristy, built later than the body of the temple and which takes advantage of the covering of the perimeter portico, also later than the essential structure of the temple.

Two of its openings are of special interest: the access and the apse window. The former opens through a slightly pointed and flared arch, with three archivolts on the outside. It rests on an impost that rests on columns with cubic bases, two-piece circular section shafts and truncated pyramidal capitals. The window of the apse has a deep flared arch flanked by two small columns with decorated shafts.