The river Perales flows through this small village in Soria, at an altitude of 928 metres, and is a tributary on the left of the Arandilla (and this, in turn, of the Duero).

At the fall of the Ancien Régime, the town became a constitutional municipality in the region of Castilla la Vieja (in the 1842 census it had 22 households), and later became part of Alcubilla de Avellaneda, to which it also belongs administratively today.

The meaning of its name probably derives from Basque(zai is the root of “guard” in Basque), which means that it could have played, together with its neighbour Zayas de Torre, a defensive role in favour of the Roman city of Clunia, located to the west of the latter.

The stretch of Roman road that connected Tarazona with Clunia, specifically the section from Osma to Clunia, passes through Zayas de Báscones. It coincides for a kilometre and a half with the boundary of Zayas de Torre and is called Carretera de los Moros (Moorish Road) in ancient maps.

In this riverside town, we can find the Church of Santiago Apóstol, which maintains the semicircular doorway half-hidden by an adobe wall.

El Cid passed through the boundaries of Zayas de Báscones during his period of exile, so cycle tourists can enjoy this stage 4 of the Way, with destination Castillejo de Robledo. In addition, the Ruta de la Lana, a trade route that transported wool from La Alcarria and cloth from Cuenca, honey and cereal to Medina del Campo and Burgos, and that today runs through the town until it reaches Mecerreyes (Burgos), being one of the points of passage of pilgrims to Santiago de Compostela.

Curiously, and due to the rescue of the image of the Virgen de las Lagunas by the people of Zayas when it was threatened with ruin, Zayas exchanged it with the town of Villálvaro, taking care of the Marian statue from December to May.

Zayas de Báscones celebrates its festivities for San Juan (24th June).

Zayas de Báscones people’s name: zayenses.