Pages

sábado, 19 de abril de 2014

CATALONIA: MONASTERY OF SANTES CREUS

Built in gothic style, Santes Creus is architecturally, together with the monastery of Poblet, the most important monastery in Catalonia. However Montserrat Abbey would be symbolically more significant.  

Next I would like to show you some pictures I took during the visit to Santes Creus.

  • Monastery of Santes Creus
  • Royal Dooeway
  • Rear Cloister
  • Royal Palace
  • Cloister
  • Chapter House
  • Dormitory
  • Church
  • Tower of the Hours
  • Cemetery
  • Restaurants beside the Monastery of Santes Creus



Monastery of Santes Creus



Santes Creus Monastery in Catalonia
The first view we had of Santes Creus Monastery


Santes Creus Monastery in Catalonia
Square of Sant Bernat Calbó in front of Santes Creus


Monastery of Santes Creus in Catalonia
Main facade of Monastery of Santes Creus


Monastery of Santes Creus in Catalonia
Assumption Gate in Santes Creus



Church of Santes Creus Monastery
West end of the church of Santes Creus where you can see the gothic stained-glass window that light the central isle and the crenellations constructed when Pere the Ceremonious ordered the monastery to be fortified


Church of Santes Creus Monastery
Romanesque central doorway of the church of Santes Creus Monastery



Royal Doorway



Santes Creus Monastery
Beside the Royal Doorway is the entrance to Santes Creus Monastery


Rear Cloister


Rear cloister of Santes Creus Monastery
Rear cloister of Santes Creus Monastery


Tower of the Hours of Santes Creus
Tower of the Hours from the rear cloister of Santes Creus


Royal Palace


Royal palace inside the monastery of Santes Creus
Royal palace built inside the monastery of Santes Creus


Cloister


Cloister of Santes Creus Monastery
Tower of the hours from the cloister of Santes Creus Monastery



Cloister of Santes Creus Monastery
One of the galleries of the cloister of Santes Creus from the entrance to the church


Cloister of Santes Creus Monastery
Cloister of Santes Creus Monastery




Cloister of Santes Creus Monastery
Gothic arches of the cloister of Santes Creus


Cloister of Santes Creus Monastery
Taking pictures of the gothic cloister of Santes Creus


Cloister of Santes Creus Monastery
Church of Santes Creus from its gothic cloister


Cloister of Santes Creus Monastery
After work, and before entering the refectory for meals, the monks would wash their hands in the circular font located in the centre of the lavabo


Chapter House


Chaper house of Santes Creus Monastery
Chaper house of Santes Creus Monastery



Dormitory



Dormitory of Santes Creus
Dormitory of Santes Creus


Church


Church of Santes Creus Monastery
Church of Santes Creus Monastery


Tombs of Jaume el Just and Blanca d'Anjou
Tombs of Jaume el Just and Blanca d'Anjou in the church of Santes Creus Monastery



Tower of the Hours



Tower of the hours of Santes Creus Monastery
Tower of the hours from the rear cloister of Santes Creus Monastery


Cemetery


Cemetery of Santes Creus
Rose window of the church of Santes Creus Monastery from the cemetery


Santes Creus Monastery in Catalonia
Overview of Santes Creus Monastery in the evening


Restaurants beside the Monastery of Santes Creus


Casalot and the restaurant of Hostal Grau (Grau Hostel) are good choices for having lunch after visiting the monastery


Casalot restaurant in Santes Creus
We had lunch in Casalot restaurant after visiting Santes Creus  


Casalot restaurant in Santes Creus
Inside the restaurant Casalot in Santes Creus


Hostal Grau in Santes Creus
Hostal Grau near the Monastery of Santes Creus


If you liked the Monastery of Santes Creus, maybe you would be interested in visiting the nearby Poblet and Vallbona de les Monges monasteries. Other interesting monasteries in Catalunya are: 


Santes Creus is located near Costa Daurada, where there are also interesting places to visit:



Finally, clicking on the next link, you will find links to other beautiful villages and places of Catalonia.


martes, 15 de abril de 2014

BARCELONA: SANTA MARIA DEL MAR

Santa Maria del Mar church is, probably, de most beautiful church in Barcelona. So it's a fantastic choice to begin a set of posts about the Barcelona Gothic Quarter, one of the areas of Barcelona I like the most.

Built in Catalan Gothic style, it was the cathedral of the common people. Besides, as the book The Cathedral of the Sea explains, its construction was possible thanks to the effort of the people of La Ribera Quarter.



Gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona
Church of Santa Maria del Mar, probably the most impressive gothic church in Barcelona. Located in the district of La Ribera, it was built between 1329 and 1383, at the height of Catalonia's maritime and mercantile preeminence


Gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona

Facade of Santa Maria del Mar. This church is surrounded and hidden by really nearby buildings, which difficults to obtain an overall impression of this imposing church, whose total width is 33 meters, which is also equal to the maximum height of the building



Rose window of Santa Maria del MarRose window of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona


Gothic doorway of Santa Maria del Mar
Gothic doorway in the main facade of Santa Maria del Mar. Archivolts and the tympanum can be seen clearly


Gothic doorway of Santa Maria del Mar
Detail of the archivolts and the tympanum of the gothic doorway in the main facade of Santa Maria del Mar



Inside the church of Santa Maria del Mar in BarcelonaInside the church of Santa Maria del Mar is really easy to realize the beauty of this gothic church of Barcelona. It is actually an outstanding example of Catalan Gothic, with a purity and unity of style that are very unusual in large mediaeval buildings


Gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona

The interior of Santa Maria del Mar church gives an impression of light and spaciousness



Gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona
Rose Window and ceiling of Santa Maria del Mar gothic church from its apse


Gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona
Another view of the gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar from its apse 


Gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona
Apse of Santa Maria del Mar gothic church in Barcelona



Inside the church of Santa Maria del MarA closer view of the altar of Santa Maria del Mar gothic church



Gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona
Apse and ceiling of Santa Maria del Mar gothic church in Barcelona


Gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona
A closer view of the Apse of Santa Maria del Mar gothic church in Barcelona


Gothic church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona
Stained glass window of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona
  


Fossar de les Moreres next to Santa Maria del MarFrom the Fossar de les Moreres, one of the former cemeteries which existed next to Santa Maria del Mar, we can get a nice image of the buttresses of the side facade, ended with an slender bell tower



Apse of Santa Maria del MarThe apse of Santa Maria del Mar is in the beginning of the Born boulevard, where there are a lot of pubs. The Born is always a really lively quarter



Detail of Santa Maria del Mar gothic church
Another detail of the archivolts, the lintel and the tympanum of the door at the rear of Santa Maria del Mar




If you like catalan gothic style, you would be interested in visiting the following religious buildings in Barcelona:





In the old city of Barcelona you can also visit other beautiful places:









Next, some useful information about this fantastic church:

- Address: Pl. Santa Maria, 1
- Phone: 933 102 390
- Clicking on the next link, a Santa Maria del Mar location map.
- How to get there:
  • Metro: L4, stop Jaume I.
  • Bus: 17, 19, 40 and 45.
  • Barcelona Bus Turístic: stop Pla de Palau.
- Opening time:
  • Monday to Saturday: from 9am to 1.30pm and from 4.30pm to 8pm.
  • Sunday and public holidays: from 10.30am to 1.30pm and from 4.30pm to 8pm.

Finally, clicking on the next link you will find links to more beautiful and interesting places in Barcelona, among them, more charming places in the Barcelona Gothic Quarter.