A small town in the Castilla-La Mancha region of Spain is home to one of the more unusual relics connected to Saint Teresa of Jesus: an old trunk said to have been left behind by the saint during one of her travels.
The trunk is kept inside the Church of San Bartolomé in Villarrubia de Santiago, in the province of Toledo. Made of wood and reinforced with metal fittings, it carries inscriptions linking it to Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada, the saint’s secular name.
Local tradition holds that Saint Teresa left the trunk in Villarrubia de Santiago during one of her many journeys across the Iberian Peninsula to found convents. The piece has since become one of the best-known elements of the town’s heritage, drawing visitors, pilgrims, and scholars.
The trunk can be viewed inside San Bartolomé during worship hours or at times set by the parish priest. Admission is free, though visitors are advised to check opening times in advance.
The church itself is one of the town’s principal historic buildings. Built in stone on a Latin cross plan, it features a five-section tower and a high altarpiece that bridges the Renaissance and Baroque styles.
A town with deep medieval roots
Villarrubia de Santiago was officially founded in 1204, though remains from earlier periods have been found within its boundaries. Iberians, Romans, and Arabs all passed through the area before the town grew in importance during the Middle Ages under the influence of the Order of Santiago.
The origin of the town’s name is also linked to the landscape. One theory holds that it derives from the word “Villarroja,” a reference to the reddish hue of the surrounding soil, an explanation already recorded in a 16th-century document.
Other points of interest in the municipality include the Casa de Lara, an old manor house on the Plaza de la Constitución next to the town hall, and the hermitage of Nuestra Señora del Castellar, built near the River Tagus about five kilometres from the town centre on the site of the former Tormón castle.
The town also has the Cueva de la Yedra and the Hoyo de la Serna archaeological site, where a Carpetanian necropolis was discovered. Villarrubia de Santiago has a population of just over 2,500.
