To the left of the image of the Virgin, in a small aedicule protected by a wrought iron grille, preserved is one of the most precious and curious objects of the sanctuary. It is the heart of Charles II. Yes, you have understood that correctly, we are in front of the king’s heart that we have seen represented in the tympanum of the south facade.
It is within a glass container guarded by two soldiers, made at the beginning of the last century. Today, the original Gothic box, commissioned by his son Charles III in 1404, serves as its pedestal. Its inscription states: “Here is the heart of King Carlos, who died in Pamplona the first night of January of the year of the incarnation of the Lord one thousand three hundred and eighty-six, and who reigned thirty-seven years, and was fifty-three years, four months and twenty-two days. God by his grace forgive him. Amen”.

In the last will and testament of Charles II, dated 1385, the king, ill and aware of his approaching fate, clearly recognised the place that progressively occupied in his devotion to Santa María de Ujué. That is why he decided to bury his body in the cathedral of Pamplona, his entrails in Roncesvalles and his heart in our sanctuary. As in the tympanum, Charles II is again next to the image of the Virgin of Ujué.
For an explanation of the Romanesque apses press 6.