Posts Tagged ‘cathedrales’
Inside Murcia Cathedral
Posted January 31, 2023
on:- In: History | Spain | Travel
- 78 Comments
On a recent trip to the city of Murcia, I finally had time to explore the interior of the Cathedral Church of Saint Mary in Murcia built in the 1500s. I was awestruck and want to share a few pictures, although they don’t do it justice. I think you will agree that the details are amazing.

Chapel of the Immaculate dedicated to the Virgin Mary

The image of Santa María, carved in polychrome wood, is dated around the year 1627

The Baptistery Chapel was built in 1546. From then until 1908, the sacrament of baptism was held in this chapel. I love the gorgeous baptismal font.

Chapel of Gil Rodriguez de Junteron, a Murcian-born priest who spent time in the Vatican during the time of Pope Julius II. This explains the Italian look of this chapel.

The crypt with confessionals on each side.

The only rose window in the cathedral, from the 15th century.

The choir with late-Renaissance stalls, carved in walnut wood. Above it stands the great Merklin organ, with almost 4,000 pipes. It is one of the most well-known organs internationally. The sound is mesmerizing.



The impressive main nave.

I’ve always been fascinated by the huge thuribles, or incense burners, known as Botafumeiros in Spain. Apparently, as well as for religious purposes, they were used to ward off the plague in medieval times.
The cathedral also houses a small museum in the cloister of the old Cathedral with a few interesting items. These were my favourite pieces.

The head of an apostle.

San Cristobal/Saint Christopher

The priest Gil Rodríguez, who died in 1552, arranged in his will that he wanted to be buried inside a large imperial Roman sarcophagus, brought from Rome. During the 1998 restoration, this amazing sarcophagus of the muses was discovered intact, buried in the crypt. It is now on display in the museum and is the oldest item in the cathedral’s collection.

An original fresco, discovered while restoring the cloister, represents the Virgen de la Misericordia and is from the 15th century.
What amazing finds!
Copyright ©2023 darlenefoster.wordpress.com – All rights reserved.
Doors of the Cathedral of Murcia
Posted January 20, 2023
on:- In: Doors | History | Spain | Travel
- 80 Comments
I am joining Dan Antion over at https://nofacilities.com/ where he runs a series called Thursday Doors. This is what he has to say:
Welcome to Thursday Doors! This is a weekly challenge for people who love doors and architecture to come together to admire and share their favorite door photos, drawings, or other images or stories from around the world. If you’d like to join us, simply create your own Thursday Doors post each (or any) week and then share a link to your post in the comments below, anytime between 12:01 am Thursday morning and Saturday noon (North American eastern time).
Cathedrals often have amazing doors and I have discovered some here in Spain I wish to share. These doors are part of the Cathedral Church of Saint Mary in Murcia.





The facade is Baroque. Building was started in 1385 and completed in 1467 with additions added up to the 18th Century.


Some of the interesting details.


The bell tower, built between 1521 and 1791, stands 90 metres (300 ft) tall—95 metres (312 ft) with the weathervane. It is the tallest campanile in Spain.
The city of Murcia is only about forty minutes away from where we live but I only just recently spent time in this amazing cathedral. I will follow up with some photos of the interior soon.
Copyright ©2023 darlenefoster.wordpress.com – All rights reserved.
A Visit to Valencia
Posted April 12, 2022
on:- In: History | Spain | Travel
- 69 Comments
A few years ago I visited Valencia and loved it. I realized I hadn’t written a blog post about this marvellous city located halfway between Alicante and Barcelona. It is often overlooked in favour of places like Barcelona, Madrid, Seville, Toledo and Granada. All great cities, but I would also highly recommend a visit to this, the third-largest city in Spain. It’s a wonderful example of the old and the new blended together perfectly. Valencia is rich in history, amazing architecture, an oasis of art, culture and leisure, and the home of paella! It’s also one of the most environmentally friendly cities in the world.
After a few devasting floods, the city planners diverted the river Turia three kilometres south of downtown and turned the former river bed into a pleasant ten-kilometre green space enjoyed by all. Parks, gardens, sports facilities, children’s play areas and walking paths fill this fifteen-hectare space.



I took a hop-on hop-off bus tour which enabled me to see most of the city. The architecture is amazing. Here are a few samples. Some of my pictures were taken from the bus so are not as good as could be, but you’ll get the idea.






I remember enjoying the 1961 film, El Cid, starring Charlton Heston and Sophie Loren. (Yes, I loved historic movies way back then already) I was excited to find a statue of the popular 11th-century warrior who fought to free Spain from invaders. He is a popular Spanish folk hero and has been called The Prince of Valencia.



There are so many wonderful museums to visit, but I didn’t have much time so chose the Ceramics Museum housed in the Palace of Marquis de Don Aguas. The splendid facade of the building is worth the visit alone. Inside are fabulous pieces of ceramics dating from pre-historic times to the present day as well as tapestries, jewellery and furniture. This visit requires a post of its own.

In my previous post, I mentioned the troupe of traditional dancers I came across. I love when this happens! They were so delighted with my interest in them, that they gave me a front-row seat to watch their performance. The children were adorable.




Valencia also has Art Nouveau buildings as well as modern structures including a world-class music hall, an art centre, a group of buildings that make up the futuristic City of Arts and Science and a Science Museum. Something to check out on another visit.
I had such a wonderful time and certainly plan to return to this incredible city.

The Miracle of Mosta
Posted April 24, 2017
on:- In: History | Travel
- 65 Comments
We took the bus to Mosta, a market town in the middle of Malta. In the centre of Mosta sits a fabulous domed cathedral built in the mid-1800s. It is an amazing piece of architecture inside and out, featuring the third largest unsupported church dome in Europe. Dedicated to the Assumption of Our Lady, it replaced a much smaller church that had been on the site since 1619. The Mosta Rotunda is also the site of a miracle.
During WWII, on April 9, 1942, while over 400 parishioners worshipped inside, a 200 kg German bomb hit the church, pierced the dome and landed in the aisle. It did not hit a single person and it did not explode! It rolled to the base of the pulpit and stopped. The military bomb disposal team removed it, defused it and threw it into the sea. A miracle indeed. A replica of the bomb can be viewed in the sacristy.
It gave me goosebumps to see this. My husband pointed out where the bomb entered the dome as the coloration where it was repaired is slightly different.
The church contains a lot of artwork and important icons. The Feast of the Assumption of Saint Mary is celebrated in August where some of the statues are taken out and paraded around town.
Visiting this church proved to be a moving experience for me, providing proof that miracles do happen. Hubby later treated me to lunch overlooking the magnificent Mosta Rotunda. It was definitely worth a visit, one I won’t forget.
Orihuela Historic Sites
Posted February 13, 2015
on:- In: History | Spain | Travel
- 32 Comments
My last post described the amazing medieval market in Orihuela. Orihuela is an interesting city dating back to the sixth century when the foundations were laid by the Romans. It sits at the base of the Sierra de Orihuela Mountains in the province of Alicante, Spain. As much as I enjoyed the market, I was also taken by the historic buildings and managed to take a few pictures which I would like to share.
I love taking pictures of interesting doorways and there were many to be found in Orihuela. There are a number of museums in the city as well which I would love to visit. I do believe I need to make another trip to explore this interesting city some more. Hope you enjoyed this glimpse.