La llegada del bizantinismo al románico peninsular. Los cimborrios del Duero

Together with some other Oriental influences, the art from Byzantium made its appearance in the Peninsular Romanesque in the second half of the 12th century. Throughout this text, we will try to examine its path and evolution alongside the banks of river Douro. Although it has countless trails to be followed through the Mediterranean Sea, southwest of France and the Iberian Peninsula, the Douro one happens to be unique chance of study. The Douro lantern towers might be the direct consequence of the crossing of different peoples and cultures along these paths, but they are nor the only proof of this contact. There are many places in which the origin of these peculiar influences might be established. Some of them require extensive research to deepen in the knowledge of the artistic figures that crystallized in the lantern towers of Zamora, Salamanca, Toro and Plasencia