Leiria Cathedral
The Cathedral of Leiria consecrated to the Virgin Mary ( Portuguese Sé Catedral de Nossa Senhora da Conceição ) is the bishopric of the Roman Catholic diocese of Leiria-Fátima in the city of Leiria in western Portugal .
location
The cathedral is located at the foot of the castle hill of the city of Leiria on the way between Lisbon and Coimbra at a height of approx. 40 m . The pilgrimage site of Fátima is about 30 km to the southeast.
history
After the city was founded in 1545 by Pope Paul III. had been designated as the seat of a bishop , the military architect Afonso Álvares , who is probably also responsible for the Portalegre Cathedral , was commissioned to build a new cathedral in 1550 . Slightly changed by later renovations, it was more severely affected by the Lisbon earthquake (1755). Although the church was consecrated in 1774, it was still unfinished when the architect died (1775 or 1780). In the course of the Napoleonic Wars on the Iberian Peninsula , marauding soldiers destroyed the entire interior in 1811.
architecture
The three-portal, but towerless Renaissance facade, divided into three segments by four stone-faced buttresses , shows windows with slight baroque echoes ; the wall surfaces are plastered and whitewashed. The corner pillars - including those on the south side - have small cubic attachments with vases as the top. In the three-aisled nave of the hall church with a transept , towering pillars dominate , the yokes are spanned by semi-dome-like star vaults ( domical vaults ) with continuous central ribs. In 1772 the bell tower (torre sineira) was built on the side behind the choir .
Furnishing
The church's furnishings include an altar retable in the central apse (capela-mor) with carved figures and paintings . In the right side apse there is a new organ and in the left another reredos.
Cloister
Behind the church - enclosed by buildings - there is a kind of cloister (claustro) for the prayer and devotion of the canons .
See also
literature
- Virgolino Ferreira Jorge: A arquitectura da Sé de Leiria. Perspectiva semântica, histórica e artística. In: Colóquio sobre a História de Leiria e da sua Região. Leiria 1991
- Vítor Serrâo et al. a .: Catedral de Leiria. História e Arte. Leiria 2005
Web links
- Leiria Cathedral - Photos + Info (Portuguese)
- Leiria Cathedral - Photos + Info (monument, Portuguese)
Coordinates: 39 ° 44 ′ 46 " N , 8 ° 48 ′ 23.5" W.