Cathedral of St. Eulalia in the center of Barcelona. The cathedral is squeezed by houses from all sides, so it is almost impossible to see it in its entirety. But even what is seen is quite enough to make sure that you have before you a real masterpiece of medieval architecture.
And it so happened that even in the IV century. on the small hill of Mons Taber, where the Roman colony was located, there was already a church. And already two centuries later it turned into the Cathedral, in which the Church Council was held in 559 - a truly significant event for that time. But the Moors of al-Mansur destroyed it in 985 and Count Ramon Berenguer I had to start building a new cathedral on the old site in the Romanesque style, traditional for that era, about the thousandth year. And then King James II of Aragon decided that this temple was small and ordered to build a grandiose cathedral in its place, which we see today in the very center of Barcelona and its popular "Gothic Quarter".
Here they are - his wonderful Gothic vaults!
And this…
And this too …
It began to be built in 1298 and was built for exactly 150 years, ending with construction in 1448 according to all the canons of the then traditional Catalan Gothic. The cathedral was dedicated to St. Eulalia, a young girl who lived in the 4th century. and, naturally, was subjected to savage torture and was martyred for the faith. As is often the case, the building has been rebuilt many times. For example, its main facade in its modern form was renovated at the end of the last century and is still subject to criticism, although it is believed that the architects who worked on it used the original drawings of 1408. The spire of the cathedral was erected only in 1913. But in principle for those who find themselves inside this temple, all this does not really matter. The meaning is completely different - a huge ceiling made of Gothic vaults and stained glass windows made in the 15th century, extending to an unimaginable height. and illuminating three naves at once.
And this is one of those windows.
This cathedral is like the cave of Ali Baba - it is twilight and the more you walk on it, the more treasures you will discover. And no wonder, because it has 26 chapels and a sacristy, a crypt with the sarcophagus of St. Eulalia, a beautiful cloister - you can't look at all this, just your eyes run up!
The abundance of sculptures and gilding is simply dazzling in the eyes.
It is not entirely clear, however, who many of these sculptures depict, since most of the inscriptions are made in Spanish, and those that are made in English are clearly not enough. But it is clear that all of them are saints revered here, and that is why they did not spare gold for them!
And looking inside this cathedral cannot be reconsidered everything! Right next to the main entrance is the Baptistery Chapel with marble baptismal fonts, by Onofre Julia around 1443. Accordingly, on the opposite side is the Chapel of St. Oligaria with a beautiful wrought iron lattice 1405. Next comes the chapel and altar of Bishop Oligarius, above which you can see the unique wooden Crucifix, which Don Juan of Austria himself (the bastard son of the Spanish king Philip II) took to his flagship of the Christian fleet squadron in the battle with by the Turks at Lepanto. Following the Chapel of St. Oligarius is the Chapel of St. Clement with the Gothic sarcophagus of Doña Sansa imenis de Cabrera and the 15th century altar. Behind the transept is the Major Chapel (Main Chapel) of the cathedral. Well, in the numerous chapels that encircle the gallery's choirs, there are also numerous other altars from the 14th and 15th centuries, which are considered unsurpassed examples of Catalan art. In the Chapel of St. Miguel, the altar of the 14th century has been preserved. with a canvas on the plot "Visit", in the Chapel del Patrosini (Chapel of St. Patrons) one of the masterpieces of Bernat Martorell is presented - the altar image "Transfiguration", in the apse Chapel del Santissima Sacramento (Holy Communion) there is an altar of the XIV century. with the image of the Archangel Gabriel. In the sixth chapel in the altar are depicted St. Martin and St. Ambrose, in the seventh (15th century) - St. Clara and St. Catherine. In the Chapel of St. Inoccentia houses the Gothic tombstone of Bishop Ramón de Escales. To the right of the Main Altar there are two unique tombstones belonging to the founders of the cathedral: Count Ramona Berenguerve I and his wife Almodis. To the left of the transept, you can get to the Carrer dels Compes via Porta de Sant Yiu, the oldest part of the cathedral, whose architecture has preserved Romanesque features.
Many chapels have statues. Nearby there are inscriptions in Spanish, but it's difficult to make out who's who from being unaccustomed. For example, I really liked the sculpture of this saint in armor. But who is he - St. George, St. Lucas or St. Sebastian, I still don't fully understand.
Under the Main Altar there is a staircase that leads to the Crypt, where the remains of St. Eulalia rest in an alabaster sarcophagus (1327 - 1339, the work of one of the disciples of Nikola Pisano, but it is not known exactly who it was).
Often in medieval cathedrals you can find knightly effigies, and, frankly, I really hoped that here too I would come across at least one. But no! There were no such in the Cathedral of Barcelona. But they managed to photograph a beautiful sarcophagus made of alabaster with effigy on the lid, which belonged to some bishop, very delicate work.
In the central part of the main nave, you can see the Renaissance fence of the large choir. Work on it began as early as 1390, when Ramón de Escales was the Bishop of Barcelona: his coat of arms (three staircases) can be seen on the walls of the choir. This fence is interesting because it is decorated with marble bas-reliefs depicting scenes from the life of St. Eulalia, by the sculptors Ordonez and Vilar (1517) Behind the fence there is also something to see: there are the famous wooden chairs, which are decorated with the multicolored gilded coats of arms of the knights of the Order of the Golden Fleece, who were summoned to this cathedral in 1519 by Emperor Charles V and the Archduke Maximilian of Austria. The armchairs and the episcopal see are the work of Sa Anglada, and the pinnacles that decorate them are carved spiers similar to those that crown the cathedral's roofs - the work of the German master Lochner (completed at the end of the 15th century). In the corner, to the right of the Main Chapel, is the Sacristia, where the Cathedral Treasury is kept, which is a valuable collection of cult and ecclesiastical art, among which there is a 15th century reliquary decorated with the order chain of the Golden Fleece that belonged to Charles V personally, the gilded armchair of King Martin of Aragonese I and a tabernacle made of gold and silver from 1390. That is, things from a cultural and historical point of view are absolutely priceless.
One of the side entrances to the cathedral.
And this is his "rose". You don't even know which one is the main one or this one is more beautiful …
The Cloister (courtyard) can be accessed through the south gate of the temple, from the Chapel of Santa Lucia, located to the right of the main entrance to the cathedral, and through the beautiful portal of St. Eulalia in the style of "flaming" Gothic, 15th century. Here you can see a covered Gothic gallery, a charming garden with magnolias, medlar and palm trees, a small functioning fountain, as well as a cathedral museum, which houses a font of the 11th century, old tapestries and various church utensils. But the most interesting thing about this courtyard is the white geese. Yes, yes, here behind bars, and from time immemorial, live white geese, exactly 13 pieces - and for some reason it is believed that they guard the peace of the townspeople who are buried next to the cathedral. These geese are very important and well-fed, downright Christmas, but willingly accept treats from the hands of tourists. Probably, if they could speak, they would have long been expressing themselves not only in Spanish, but also in French, and in Italian, and even in Russian, since there are enough of our compatriots here too.
This gallery …
And here are these famous geese …
Courtyard inside.
It is customary to light candles in our churches. And here, too, there were plenty of candles, but instead of living fire, they had electric bulbs. Interestingly, around each altar there was something like a frame made of lamps, and a coin acceptor was installed at its base at the level of the hand. My granddaughter really wanted to put a coin in there, and I gave her a one cent coin. Click! And one light came on in front of the altar. She shone a little and went out. Two cents had already turned on two bulbs. Then my granddaughter got into the taste and demanded one euro. And before she had time to lower it, a hundred light bulbs lit up at once around the altar. True, they burned for a short time, but it was very beautiful. And by the way, everything is fair - you pay money - it burns. You don’t have to watch, as we do, that some kind of … "strange woman in black" will not extinguish the candle you put on and will not put it into a box under the altar. Not everywhere and not always it happens, but … it happens!
Leaving the cathedral, you will certainly want to go around it from all sides. Do not forget that the entrance to the "Gothic Quarter" is to the right of the cathedral, if you face it and wander there for a very, very long time.
Entrance to the streets of the "Gothic Quarter".
So you can wander there for a very long time …
But on the other hand, there are also a lot of interesting things … Here, for example, what a fancy street balcony.
On the walls of the cathedral you can see such a gargoyle …
… and such an elephant - "rain weir" …
… and very interesting reliefs. For example, one dating back to 1300. As you can see, it depicts a warrior in under-armor, chain mail with patch plates on his arms, and a helmet of the "iron pan" type. But the most interesting thing is the armor on his feet. Exactly the same as those of the effigia of Count Trancavel from the castle of Carcassonne! That is, for Spain it was quite normal protective equipment at that time.
On this bas-relief there is a famous scene - "Samson is tearing apart the mouth of a lion." But I wonder how the Spanish sculptor tried to beat her: he armed Samson with a dagger!
If after all this you really want to drink, then at your service is this, and a very old city "drinker" of the 18th century, which nevertheless works to this day.
