The construction of the temple is in full swing …
This temple is unique because it is one of the most famous "long-term construction" in the world. Why? Yes, because the initiators of its construction at one time for some reason considered that it should be conducted only with voluntary donations. And they collect, yes, of course, but not always regularly and in the desired volumes. And then, very complex stone blocks are used for it, which need very careful processing and individual adjustment.
And this is how he looks in the hot city haze from the top of Montjuic.
And, of course, everyone who has heard of it is attracted by its appearance, which has made it one of the most important sights of Barcelona today. For example, in 2006, its construction was visited by 2.26 million people, the same as in the Prado Museum and the Alhambra Palace.
Despite the construction in this temple, which has the official title of the Little Papal Basilica, services are regularly held (the official consecration was carried out on November 7, 2010 by Pope Benedict XVI). That is, this temple is not only a very important and popular tourist site for the city, but also an active Catholic church.
This is the line at the entrance. Moves slowly. The people … darkness, and you have to stand for several hours in the heat to get inside. For tourists coming here by bus, the task is almost impossible.
It is interesting that the construction of the temple is taking place on a plot of land that does not belong to the Church, and is not supervised by the Barcelona episcopate. That is, as it was a "people's construction", so it remains so to this day, and this temple itself, in fact, is also "national"!
Commemorative sign of the beginning of construction.
Well, and the history of this truly amazing building in all respects is as follows. The idea of building was born back in 1874. Then, in 1881, a land plot was purchased with donations in the Eixample district of Barcelona, which in those years was located … far outside the city. The first stone in its foundation was laid on March 19, 1882, and this day is considered to be the beginning of its construction. The original project belonged to the architect Francisco del Villara, and according to him, the temple was a neo-Gothic basilica in the form of a traditional Latin cross, with five longitudinal and three more transverse naves. But it turned out that at the end of 1882, del Villar began to disagree with the customers and he left the project, after which the management of the work was transferred to Antoni Gaudi.
It is quite difficult to photograph against the background of this temple. From afar, it's uncomfortable. And close up, it turns out that either the top or the bottom gets into the camera.
At first, Gaudi continued to embody the ideas of his predecessor in stone, and construction proceeded according to a previously approved plan. But then it happened that Gaudí received an unprecedentedly generous donation from a certain anonymous and … decisively reworked the entire project. He decided to crown the temple with many monumental towers, and to attach deep symbolic meaning to all elements of the cathedral, both inside and outside.
If someone saw how children make towers of liquid sand on the beach, then here their similarity with the architect's idea is obvious.
Realizing that he could simply scare the city's inhabitants if he began work according to his plan from the facade of the Passion of the Lord, where the crucifixion of Christ was to be depicted in detail, Gaudí decided to “prepare” them for this and in 1892 began with work on the facade of Nativity. One of the features of the decor he used was the decoration of the tops of the turrets and the gutters of the drainpipes with images of lizards and snails, which were found in abundance then in all the neighborhoods and … were also God's creatures. Then in 1899 he completed the portal of the Holy Virgin of the Rosary, which also has a lot of symbolism. In 1911, Gaudí created a project for the facade of the Passion, but its construction began after his death.
There are many different technical buildings around, so it is difficult to photograph it from all sides.
Finally, on November 30, 1925, the bell tower of the Nativity façade, 100 meters high, was completed, which was dedicated to St. Barnabas. Unfortunately, this was the only bell tower completed during the life of Gaudí, who devoted more than forty years of his life to the construction of this temple.
When Gaudí died, the construction was continued by his closest associate, Domenech Sugranes, who had worked with him for over 20 years. He died in 1938, but before that he managed to build three bell towers of the Nativity façade (1927-1930), finished work on the ceramic cypress tree over the central entrance of the façade, and did much more that Gaudí did not manage to accomplish. The Spanish Civil War made it possible to continue the construction of the Nativity façade only in 1952.
The walls of the temple and its facades are decorated with an impressive number of various sculptures.
In 1954, the construction of the Passion façade was finally begun, based on Gaudí's designs from 1892 to 1917. In 1977, the four towers of the Passion façade were completed, and in 1986, work began on sculptures to decorate it, which were completed at the beginning of the 21st century. At the same time, stained-glass windows dedicated to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ were mounted in the windows, and a bronze sculpture of the Ascension of the Lord was cast.
"Flight to Egypt". Even the donkey is immortalized!
Today, the church is working on a 170-meter central tower topped with a cross and an apse tower dedicated to St. Virgin Mary. According to the existing plan, in this part of the building there should be four more towers named after the Evangelists. All construction work is due to be completed in 2026, including the façade of Glory, which began in 2000.
"Facade of Passion"
The completed church will have eighteen towers. Twelve, that is, four on each of the facades, will be from 98 to 112 meters high, and are dedicated to the twelve apostles. Accordingly, four more towers 120 meters high, named after the Evangelists, will surround the main 170-meter tower of Jesus Christ, and the bell tower of the Virgin Mary will be located above the apse. The towers of the evangelists should be decorated with their sculptures and traditional symbols: a calf (Luke), an angel (Matthew), an eagle (John) and a lion (Mark). There will be a huge cross on the central spire of the tower of Jesus Christ. The overall height of the Temple, according to Gaudí, also could not be accidental in any way: it should not have been higher in height than the natural creation of the Lord - Mount Montjuïc. The rest of the towers will have decorations in the form of sheaves of wheat and grapes, which should symbolize Holy Communion.
This is how the temple looks inside!
The facade of the Nativity, most of which was created during the life of Gaudí, is formed by three portals glorifying Christian virtues. All portals are decorated with sculptures made in a very realistic manner and dedicated to the earthly life of Jesus Christ. For example, above the left portal of Hope, for example, scenes of Mary's betrothal to Joseph, their flight to Egypt and the horrors of the beating of infants are shown, while its pommel with the inscription "Save us" symbolizes Mount Montserrat. The right portal of Faith is decorated with sculptures "Meeting of Elizabeth with the Mother of God", "Jesus and the Pharisees", "Introduction to the Temple" and "Jesus in the Carpenter's Workshop". Accordingly, the central portal under the Christmas star is decorated with sculptural compositions "The Birth of Jesus" and "Adoration of the Shepherds and Magi", as well as scenes of the Annunciation and the Wedding of the Holy Virgin.over which the figures of angels blowing into trumpets "hover".
And this is its columns and vault.
The shape of the bell towers, similar to sand castles, was not chosen by chance. It is determined by the structure of spiral staircases passing inside. In the uppermost part of them, Gaudí wanted to install tubular bells, the ringing of which should be combined with the sounds of as many as five organs and the voices of one and a half thousand singers. On each of the bell towers, from top to bottom, the following motto is located: "Glory to the Almighty." And above it rise polychrome spiers, decorated with the symbols of the episcopal dignity - the Ring, Mithra, Rod and Cross.
Close to the temple, no matter where you go, there are finished models of it everywhere. Where from paper …
Inside the temple, Gaudí subordinated all interiors to strict geometric laws. There are both round and elliptical windows and stained-glass windows, arches of hyperbolic outlines, helical staircases, and also numerous star structures that appear at the intersection of various surfaces, and ellipsoids decorating the support columns - this is a far from complete list of the geometric details of this unusual temple.
But in the Barcelona Museum of Chocolate, it is made of chocolate!
The main weight of the towers and vaults is supported by the columns, which transfer their enormous weight to the foundation. In cross-section, the bases of the columns are star-shaped with the number of vertices from 4 to 12, which is associated with the load on each such column. As it approaches the vaults, it branches and creates an unusual structure in the form of … stems, which was dictated by the need to support the corresponding parts of the vault as efficiently as possible.
The place is full of tourists. Nowhere to spit! But literally a step to the side, and you can find yourself on such a completely quiet and shady street.
