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Arrival in Teruel
The exact date on which Pierres Vedel and his wife, Clara Vizcarret, arrived in Teruel remains unknown. However, all available evidence suggests that their arrival took place around 1549, the year in which the city council entrusted him with one of his earliest documented commissions in the province of Teruel: the repair of the Tower of San Martín.
Two principal hypotheses have been proposed to explain the circumstances that may have led to his appointment and, consequently, to his arrival in the city. The first was put forward by the historian Santiago Sebastián, who suggested that the recommendation may have come from the French sculptor Gabriel Joly. Joly had arrived in Teruel in 1536 to work on the main altarpiece of Santa María de Mediavilla and, faced with the need for major architectural works, may have recommended the services of a fellow countryman of proven skill and reputation: Pierres Vedel.
The second theory points to the influence of the powerful Fernández de Heredia family. Having been satisfied with the work carried out by Vedel at the Church of Saint Mary in Fuentes de Ebro, the lords of the family may have recommended the architect to the municipal authorities of Teruel, thus facilitating his involvement in the major building projects promoted by the city.
Whatever the circumstances of his appointment, Vedel's arrival marked the beginning of a long and fruitful relationship with Teruel and its surrounding territory, where he would execute some of the most significant works of his professional career.
Across the Lands of Teruel
From the time of his establishment in Teruel, tracing Pierres Vedel's biography becomes considerably easier. Between 1552 and 1560, the residence of Vedel and his family in the city is documented with certainty, as their names appear, together with those of several collaborators and assistants, in the Annual Register of the Penitents of San Martín, preserved in the Parish Archive of El Salvador.
During these years, Vedel developed an intense professional activity throughout what is now the province of Teruel, working in towns such as Mora de Rubielos, Rubielos de Mora, Santa Eulalia del Campo, and the city of Teruel itself. His activity also extended to Daroca, where he participated in some of the most important building projects of the period.
The family remained in Teruel until the construction of the Parish Church of Santa Eulalia del Campo led the architect to settle in that town. All available evidence suggests that the family resided there between approximately 1560 and 1566. Vedel's presence in Santa Eulalia is confirmed by a notarial inventory drawn up after his death, which explicitly mentions the house he maintained in the village:
"Inventario de Messe Pierri de lo que se halló en Santolalia. Mas se halló en la casa de Santolalia de lo que havían allí y de lo que havían traído de Teruel..."
The final stage of Vedel's life was closely linked to Albarracín. Although his name is already associated with the city in 1556, when he received a payment of 1,531 sueldos and 6 dineros for work carried out there, the exact date on which he transferred his residence remains unknown.
