Look at the Maiden's big moon

* The author is part of the community of readers of La Vanguardia.

Oliver Thansan
Oliver Thansan
24 December 2023 Sunday 15:49
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Look at the Maiden's big moon

* The author is part of the community of readers of La Vanguardia

The moon, now almost completely full, has joined the congratulations of the Christmas holidays in Cardona, where it shines above the castle and shines on the Minyona tower. as seen in this snapshot in La Vanguardia's Readers' Photos.

The December full moon can already be seen round with the naked eye since this past Sunday, as we see in the image, but it will reach its maximum fullness on Tuesday at 7:33 p.m.

It is known as the "cold moon," a nickname given to it by Native Americans, specifically the Mohawk people, in reference to the colder temperatures typically associated with December in the Northern Hemisphere.

Cardona Castle is probably the most important medieval fortress in Catalonia. It is located on a hill that overlooks the salt valley and the Cardener valley, as can be seen in the images, which attest to its strategic location.

It was built in the year 886 by Wifredo el Velloso. Romanesque and Gothic in style, it includes the so-called Sala Daurada and the Sala dels Entresòls.

Its jewel is the Minyona tower, which is located at the highest point of the mountain. Its original structure corresponded to a cylindrical tower of about 10.5 meters in diameter by 25 meters in height, comparable to those of the primitive castles built in Catalonia in the 10th-11th centuries as watchtowers for surveillance and control of the territory, in addition to towers representing the lord's jurisdiction.

Its current appearance, only 12.5 meters high, is the result of the reforms carried out between 1794 and 1810 to prevent it from serving as a firing reference for artillery in the event of a siege.

It owes its nickname to an 18th century legend that tells of the love of one of the viscounts' daughters, Minyona, with a Muslim leader.