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Route of the Holy Grail

Anniesantiago

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My housemate tested positive for Covid yesterday, so we're spending the week indoors.
Today I was watching a program on Netflix called "Mysteries of the Faith" and it mentions the Crown of Thorns and a pilgrimage in Spain called Route of the Holy Grail. Apparently, it is a walking route - you get a Credential and have it stamped just as you do if you're walking the pilgrimage to Santiago.

Has anyone here walked this route or does anyone have more information on it?
I found several websites that mentioned it briefly but no real info on where to get a credential, etc.
It apparently begins (according to some websites) in Jaca?

Has anyone walked this?
 
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There is one in the Aragon area from Jaca up the Camino Aragon a bit, then over through the mountains, curling its way back towards the CA and into the monastery of San Juan de la Peña (one of the alleged hiding spots when the Grail was on the move due to the invasion of the Moors). I’ve walked part of it and driven part of it. There was little in the way of support and it seemed more of a horse trail than one to walk. However, there are some very interesting old churches and hermitages (mostly abandoned) and the countryside is beautiful. No stamps, no albergues, no pilgrims, but if you like solo hiking and camping, it would be an interesting walk.
 
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Last (and recent information) I have is for the part in Valencia's Comunity, available at
https://ruta-grial.comunitatvalenciana.com/ruta-grial (see note of MinaKamina before)

Years ago I had also:

Santo Grial | Holy Grail

rutasantogrial.es

elcaminodelsantogrial.com | Registrado en DonDominio

Este dominio ha sido registrado por medio del agente registrador DonDominio.com
www.elcaminodelsantogrial.com

Valencia: Ruta del Santo Grial

RUTA DEL SANTO GRIAL, RUTA SANTO GRIAL, SANTO CÁLIZ, VALENCIA, RUTA DEL SANTO CÁLIZ, PEREGRINACIONES, SANTO GRIAL, SANTO CÁLIZ.
rutasantogrial.blogspot.com

Ruta del Grial | Huesca

Ruta del Grial, Huesca. 562 likes. Desde Jerusalén hasta Valencia pasando durante 1.100 años por Aragón: el apasionante periplo de la reliquia más preciada de la cristiandad.
www.facebook.com

The way starts a few before Jaca, continues by Jaca, San Juan de la Peña, Huesca (sharing part of the Camino de Santiago Catalan, the GR1 and GR65), Zaragoza, Teruel and ends in Valencia. From Zaragoza and Teruel it shares parts of the Camino de Santiago de Sagunto and the Camino del Cid (GR160).

In this moment this looks more a nice project than a reality. Maybe good for pilgrim who wants lonely new ways.

The Valencian Comunity is promoting it in its territory, focusing clearly on turism.

Buen Camino
Jean-Luc
 
JLWV said:
The way starts a few before Jaca, continues by Jaca, San Juan de la Peña, Huesca (sharing part of the Camino de Santiago Catalan, the GR1 and GR65), Zaragoza, Teruel and ends in Valencia.
Click to expand...
Being the way the Holy Grail may have been moved into and through Spain, wouldn't the route start in Valencia and end somewhere in the north, like Jaca?
 
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Actually, the Valencian cathedral holds what they claim is the Holy Grail, so a pilgrimage to that site makes sense. However, you’d be correct in that the Grail would have traveled north away from the invading Moors until it found safety in the Aragon region. Given that so many conflicting reports exist if its locations and movements, any trail is simply conjecture anyways.
 
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Well the Catholic Church will tell you that it’s likely in Valencia…
 

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Several places claim it, including Leon
 
Anniesantiago said:
Several places claim it, including Leon
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Yes, but, as you know but others might not, the one in León is a different one from the one that most of us have been discussing. The chalice in León was not historically claimed to be the grail. It has the name Chalice of Doña Urraca and was not considered to be the Holy Grail until 2014 when researchers wrote a book on it.

Chalice of Doña Urraca - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org
 
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Rick of Rick and Peg said:
It has the name Chalice of Doña Urraca and was not considered to be the Holy Grail until 2014 when researchers wrote a book on it.
Click to expand...
And furthermore and FWIW, Wikipedia has a long article about the various holy grails and holy chalices and describes both the medieval myths and the modern myths associated with it.

I had always associated the Holy Grail with Perceval, and certainly not with Spain. It was news to me that there are places in Spain that have a claim to it. I learnt about it only through this forum. I somehow doubt that these narratives are widely known outside of Spain.
 
I think if we get into debate about the Holy Grail then Ivar will need more server capacity and a bus-load of moderators.

I’ve seen at least six Holy Grails; all of which were outstanding works of art. As with many subjects of a religious nature, whatever you believe is good enough for me to respect your belief; just don’t try to convince me that you’re right.
 
@Anniesantiago - we watched the same program and I was surprised by it. It looks like a beautiful Camino!
 
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I didn't know much about the Holy Grail until this thread. Even as a fairly devout Catholic, it's not a subject that comes up so I don't hear about, or talk about it much. It is an interesting topic though, in the context of history and how Catholic holy relics are tied to pilgrimage in Europe. I wonder if the Grail shared a history similar to how the Sudarium of Oviedo was brought to Spain - moving locations ahead of the invading Moors.
 
astronwolf said:
Being the way the Holy Grail may have been moved into and through Spain, wouldn't the route start in Valencia and end somewhere in the north, like Jaca?
Click to expand...
No, because the grail is purported to be seated at the cathedral in Valencia. It ended there rather than starting from there. So if you want to *arrive* to see it, having followed the path (similar to the movement of relics from Leon to Oviedo), then you are to follow the “established to the best of the ability” of the faithful…

Me? I have serious doubts that the simple carpenter had such a stunningly beautiful chalice, even for what he believed was to be his final meal/gathering…

But am I interested in walking the route? Perhaps, yes. Always searching for something more peaceful, traveling historical roads (whether ‘religiously’ verifiable or not), seeing more of the peninsula I love so much… and arriving somewhere imbued with a reverence that is largely absent from where I live…
 
Perambulating Griffin said:
Me? I have serious doubts that the simple carpenter had such a stunningly beautiful chalice, even for what he believed was to be his final meal/gathering…
Click to expand...

Worth a visit and a read on its past. The Valencia chalice has been heavily modified and added to over time, starting as a stone Jewish blessing cup. Its “of the era” but the rest is simply faith.
 
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Vacajoe said:
Worth a visit and a read on its past. The Valencia chalice has been heavily modified and added to over time, starting as a stone Jewish blessing cup. Its “of the era” but the rest is simply faith.
Click to expand...
So many repairs and additions that it is no longer the same “house”… That said, I have loads of room for faith… and I would be very interested in travelling the road to see how it *feels* as a faith exercise.
Walking from Monserrat in May 24, up to at least Logrono (then maybe backward on a bus to visit Puenta La Reina because my DS really wants to return to that favourite village… and then I will bus back to Logrono and revisit the CF for the first time in a decade… this time paying particular attention to the value of hospitality as a cultural manifestation of the obligations of faith…

If all goes well (no injuries)… I will think of doing the ’less supported’ way of the chalice In 2025.
 
Perambulating Griffin said:
Walking from Monserrat
Click to expand...

Off-topic for the Grail, but why not start in Manresa, the endpoint of the Camino Ignacio? Fascinating place on its own, but perfect for starting that Camino. Walking TOWARDS Montserrat is really an amazing experience.
 
Vacajoe said:
Off-topic for the Grail, but why not start in Manresa, the endpoint of the Camino Ignacio? Fascinating place on its own, but perfect for starting that Camino. Walking TOWARDS Montserrat is really an amazing experience.
Click to expand...
Can’t on this trip… Am keeping a promise to my mother before I get to Montserrat, starting from Bordeaux, heading on foot for St. Jean and then over the hill as far along as I can get until I grab a bus to meet someone in particular on a pre-assigned date at Montserrat.
 
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This sounds very interesting.
 
Rick of Rick and Peg said:
The chalice in León was not historically claimed to be the grail ... until 2014 when researchers wrote a book on it.
Click to expand...
The book is Kings of the Grail: Tracing the Historic Journey of the Holy Grail from Jerusalem to Spain, Margarita Torres Sevilla and Jose Miguel Ortega del Rio, 2015. ... Very much worth a read, IMHO! ... Available from Amazon in hard copy or Kindle.

The "Chalice of Dona Urraca" is currently housed in a special high-security underground vault in the Museum of the Basilica of San Isidoro (a museum which always seems to be re-inventing itself, btw!) ... I never pass through Leon without paying my respects to it. ... My last visit was 10/21/2023. ... Is it "the" "Holy Grail"? Well, I've seen three alleged "Holy Grails" over the long course of my life, and if I were a betting man I'd put my money on this one.
 
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It is simply a wooden cup (some say onyx), later encapsulated in gold and jewels (by the Cat. chuch, probably), now on display in San Isidoro, a few 100 m. from the Leon Cathedral, right on the Camino out of Leon. You can drop by and see it when leaving Leon. Check opening hours, though.

It is kept in a separate room, guarded by electronic alarms, and you have to ask to be allowed for entrance, but you will be allowed, under a watching eye: Obviously a very valuable object. It is very impressive, yet the inner centre is just a small wooden cup, which should maybe make it more reliable/probable for the son of a carpenter.

I am in line with @rappahannock_rev that this one may be something.

It is said, confirmed by historians, but I cannot remember where, right now, that it was brought from Israel ca. 500 AD when Ethiopian Christians (remember, they still claim that they have the ark of the covenant in a small church in Ethiopia, guarded by single monks for the rest of their lifes; check the link given. It was supposedly brought there ca. 500 BC) fled Jerusalem, and it (the chalice) was for some unknown reason given to Egyptian authorities shortly after, and then ended up in Spain ca. 1.000 AD, if I remember correctly. (but it is such a long time ago, and my memory may fail me... )

Whatever, it is quite a historic object in its own right, and well worth a visit & reflection.

Chalice of Doña Urraca - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org
 
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Thank you Rev for your addendum to my post. When I wrote it I was either in a rush or lazy. The museum was a top highlight of our 2015 camino. I desperately wanted to see the Royal Pantheon there also known as the "Sistine Chapel of Romanesque Art" for its ceiling frescos. We got there a half hour before closing but I insisted that we visit. The shop at the entrance/exit had copies of the books for sale but I paid them little regard; also pretty much everything else, including the chalice (then on public display like other artifacts but in its own room). I spent most time in the pantheon; on my own with enough time I may have spent two hours there. The chalice that I originally passed by was given its viewing as I was ushered out and that's when I discovered its heritage.

The English verison of the official webpage has a good sitemap menu at:
The two pages I offer as the best sections of the museum are:

Chalice's tower - San Isidoro Museum - Royal Collegiate Church

The body of the Chalice is formed by 2 cups of eastern Roman onix or agate one for the drinking vessel and one for the base dated in the first century.
www.museosanisidorodeleon.com

The Royal Panteon - San Isidoro Museum - Royal Collegiate Church

The Royal Panteon is a marvellous place wellknown as “The Sistine Chapel of the Romanesque Art”. Here lie 33 members of the Leonese Court.
www.museosanisidorodeleon.com

The English translation is a little rough; for example I saw Doña Urraca referred to as both she and he in the same sentence. There are some wobbly pictures there that are for viewing with virtual reality glasses. On one of the museum's pages I read that a king changed the Camino Francés to pass by the Basilica de San Isadoro. It did in 2015 and probably still does so no pilgrim should the museum.
 
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