Seville Cathedral

Cathedral, Alcázar and Archivo General de Indias in Seville
UNESCO world heritage
The southeast side of the cathedral
National territory:	Spain
Type:	Culture
Criteria :	i, ii, iii, vi
Surface:	1 ha
Reference No .:	383
UNESCO region :	Europe and North America
History of enrollment
Enrollment:	1987  (session 11)

Cathedral west facade and Giralda

inside view

Cathedral from rooftop of Plaza Nueva

The Seville Cathedral ( Catedral de Sevilla ), the Episcopal Church of the Archdiocese of Seville in Seville . It is the largest Gothic church in Spain and one of the largest in the world . It was built 1401-1519, stands since 1928 under monument protection and belongs to since 1987 World Heritage Site of UNESCO .

cathedral

The cathedral was built between 1401 and 1519 in the Gothic style on the remains of the Arab Mezquita Mayor built in the 12th century. It is the largest religious building in Spain and one of the largest cathedrals in the world. Its length together with the royal chapel is 145 m, its width 82 m. The height of the central nave is 42 m, the cathedral has a total of five naves.

In July 2008 the oldest floor plan of the cathedral from the 16th century was found in the Bidaurreta monastery in northern Spain near San Sebastián . The drawing shows five naves and 32 columns.

In addition to magnificent grave sculptures from the Middle Ages, the cathedral also houses the tomb for Christopher Columbus, built in 1902 . The whereabouts of his bones was uncertain after he had crossed the Atlantic several times. The four pallbearers represent the kingdoms of Castile , León , Aragón and Navarre .

Layout

Cathedral floor plan

High altar with retablo, Capilla Mayor

No.	Surname	Remarks
1	Puerta de la Asuncion	Main entrance; the main portal was not completed until 1833 and shows a stone relief of the " Assumption of the Virgin Mary " in its tympanum
2	Puerta del Bautismo	The Baptism Portal was built in the 15th century and decorated with a scene of the baptism of Jesus. The work comes from the workshop of Lorenzo Mercadante. It is in the Gothic style.
3	Puerta del Nacimiento	Portal of Birth
4th	Puerta de San Cristobal	and Porta de la Lonja called
5	Puerta de las Campanillas	The name comes from the time it was built; from there campanillas (bells) were struck to call the workers. Here is u. a. a relief showing Christ entering Jerusalem.
6th	Puerta de los Palos	or Puerta de la Adoración de los Magos in view of a relief that shows the veneration of the three kings .
7th	Puerta del Lagarto	Lizard gate , a prepared crocodile is hung in front of the entrance
8th	Puerta de la Concepción	The Gate of Conception connects the Cathedral with the Orange Court. It is kept locked and only opened on holidays. It was designed by Demetrio de los Rios and completed by Adolfo Fernandez Casanova. In order to fit into the overall building, it was built in the Gothic style.
9	Puerta del Sagrario	The gate of the sanctuary, the refuge, connects the main building with the sanctuary. It was designed by Pedro Sanchez Falconete towards the end of the 17th century. It is framed by Corinthian columns. Above him is a statue of King Ferdinand III of Castile next to those of Saints Isidore, Leander, Justa and Rufina.
10	Puerta del Perdón	Entrance gate from the Moorish times to the orange courtyard of the old mosque.
11	Capilla Real	forms the "face" of the cathedral: 38 meters long, built between 1551 and 1575 in place of the old royal burial chapel, closed in 1773 with a lattice.
12	Sala Capitular	Chapter House , built 1530 to 1592. Painting Immaculate Conception by Murillo, c. 1650 to 1670.
13	Sacristia Mayor	The 16th century building contains valuable art treasures, including the keys of Seville (1248), a reliquary of Alfonso X, a cross relic of St. Helene, a bronze candelabra by Bartolome Morel and the painting " Descent from the Cross " by Pedro de Campana
14th	Sacristia de los Cálices	Sacristy of Chalices, from 1529. Painting by Goya (Saints Justina and Saint Rufina), Luis de Morales (Pieta) and Murillo (Holy Family).
15th	Iglesia del Sagrario	(1618–1662), a beautiful baroque building that houses a retablo bearing a " Descent from the Cross " by Pedro Roldan

Chapels

The chapel Capilla de San Antonio houses the painting La Visión de San Antonio created by Murillo (visions = the delusions, meaning the temptations of St. Anthony ).

Also worth seeing are the Capilla de la Virgen de la Antigua with the Virgen fresco and the Capilla Real , built in the Renaissance style between 1551 and 1575 . The royal chapel serves as the burial chapel for Ferdinand III. , his wife Beatrix and his sons; including Alfons X.

The Capilla Mayor contains the largest altar retable in the world, the retablo , a major work of Spanish woodcarving Gothic . It was created under several masters between 1482 and 1564 and measures 23 (height) by 20 (width) meters. The image of the Virgen de la Sede , embossed in silver, sits enthroned at the bottom , above 45 magnificent and detailed relief fields with wood-carved scenes from the lives of Jesus Christ and Mary.

organ

The history of the organs in Seville Cathedral can be traced back to 1479. In the course of time there were various instruments. Today there are two large organs in the central nave (choir) . They are mirror images of each other in two bays with the organ prospect to the central nave and the side aisles. Your baroque brochures are made of solid wood.

The instrument, which is played from a central, free-standing console, goes back to the work of Aquelino Amezua from 1901, which was subjected to a neo-baroque transformation in 1970. In 1996 Gerhard Grenzing (El Papiol, Spain) overhauled the organ and restored it to its previous condition. The registers are divided into five works, the main work (organo mayor), the Rückpositiv (“cadireta”, Catalan: “little chair”), the swell work (expresivo), the bombbarden work and the pedal . The register names are based on the tiento .

I Organo Mayor Cc 4 01. flautado 16 ′ 02. violón 16 ′ 03. flautado 08th' 04th tapado 08th' 05. octava 04 ′ 06th quinta 01 1 ⁄ 3  ′ 07th corneta V 08th' 08th. lleno mayor V-VI0 09. zímbala VI 10. bombarda 16 ′ 11. trompeta real 08th' 12. trompeta batalla 08th' 13. bajoncillo / clarín 04 ′ / 8 ′ 14th orlos 08th' 15th clarín 08th' 16. chirimía 04 ′

II Cadireta Cc 4 17th flautado 08th' 18th chiminea 08th' 19th octava 04 ′ 20th tapadillo 04 ′ 21st docena 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′ 22nd quincena 02 ′ 23. decinovena 01 1 ⁄ 3  ′ 24. lleno III 25th zímbala III 26th churumbela II0 27. trompeta 08th' 28. cromorno 08th' 29 bajoncillo 04 ′

III Expresivo Cc 4 30th flautado violón 16 ′ 31. flauta armónica 08th' 32. corno de gamo 08th' 33. voz celeste 08th' 34. principal 04 ′ 35. flauta octaviante0 04 ′ 36. lleno V 37. fagot 16 ′ 38. trompeta 08th' 39. clarín 04 ′ 40. oboe 08th' 41. voz humana 08th'

IV. Sección Bombarda Cc 4 42. flautado mayor 16 ′ 43. flautado 08th' 44. octava 04 ′ 45. quincena 02 ′ 46. nazardos y corneta III-VII0 47. trompeta imperial 32 ′ 48. bombarda 16 ′ 49. trompeta magna 16 ′ 50. clarin claro 08th' 51. chirimía 04 ′ 52. violeta 02 ′ 53. trompeta de batalla 08th' 54. bajoncillo 04 ′

Pedal approx 1 55. contras 32 ′ 56. flautado 16 ′ 57. subbajo 16 ′ 58. flautado 08th' 59. bajo dulce 08th' 60. octava 04 ′ 61. compuestas IV 62. quinta 10 2 ⁄ 3  ′ 63. Nazardus III 64. contra bombarda 0 32 ′ 65. bombarda 16 ′ 66. fagot 16 ′ 67. trompeta 08th' 68. clarín 04 ′

• Pairing :
  • Normal coupling: I / P, II / P, III / P, IV / P, II / I, III / I, IV / I, III / II
• Playing aids : Storage (mixturas ex, llengüeteria ex, exterior ex) fixed combinations (tutti, zapata de expressión para el III), typesetting system

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Sarcophagus of Christopher Columbus

Sarcophagus of Columbus

The sarcophagus of Christopher Columbus is located at the Puerta de la Lonja . The monument was created in 1902. The sarcophagus is carried by four heralds who represent the kingdoms of Castile , León , Aragon and Navarre . This is a symbolism that the remains of Columbus also “traveled”. After his death in Valladolid in 1506, he was brought to Seville a few years later and then transferred to Santo Domingo in 1596. When the French came there in 1795, they did not want to leave Columbus to them and the remains were brought to Havana. In 1898 the remains were shipped back to Seville. In 2006, Spanish scientists carried out a DNA comparison with the remains from the sarcophagus and remains of Columbus' brother and son Fernando Columbus and confirmed his identity. The fact that the bearers with the coats of arms of Castile and Leon look up, while those with the coats of arms of Navarre and Aragón look down, is supposed to indicate that initially only the former benefited from colonial trade and the other two were excluded from it until 1778.

Giralda

Giralda

→ Main article : Giralda

The minaret of the old Moorish mosque , today the tower of the cathedral, called Giralda , is the symbol of the city. The tower is the remainder of the former mosque from 1184 and was then one of the tallest structures in the world (only surpassed by the two largest of the three pyramids in Giza ( Egypt )).

It is unusual that this tower is up to the height of the belfry , i.e. H. up to the gallery at approx. 70 m height, can be climbed on horseback. Instead of stairs, the builders built an approx. 2.50 m wide ramp , the ceiling height of which enables ascent on horseback. Through this ramp (instead of stairs) important news could be announced quickly.

In the bell house there are 24 bells, 20 on the outside - 5 on each side - and 4 bells on the inside. The bronze Giraldillo stands on top of the tower . It is a female statue as an incarnation (embodiment) of the triumphant Christian faith. It is 4 m high, weighs about 2,000 kg and was made by the artist Bartolomé Morel. Today, the Giraldillo, which is located on the Puerta de San Cristobal (Puerta de la Lonja), in front of the cathedral, is a copy of the restored original. There is the tourist entrance for individuals to the cathedral and to visit the Giralda (2017: 9 €; students under 25: 4 €).

Including the extensions carried out in Christian times, with the Giraldillo, the Giralda measures 104.5 meters. The name Giralda (Spanish: girar - turn, circle) comes from the weather vane on the top of the tower.

Orange pit

Orange court with fountain

At the west portal, the Puerta del Perdón , Moorish stylistic features such as Kufic script and horseshoe arch contrast with Christian art. The archway leads to the Orange Courtyard (Patio de los Naranjos). In front of the west facade of the cathedral is the former forecourt of the mosque. The well, which dates back to Visigothic times, was used by the Moors for ritual ablutions.

Web links

Commons : Seville Cathedral  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Photos with explanations (German)
• Official website for tourism in Spain: Seville Cathedral

Individual evidence

1. ↑ "floor plan of the Cathedral of Seville discovered" , Der Standard , July 13, 2008
2. ↑ Information about the organs on the cathedral website
3. ↑ Information on disposition on the website of the organ builder Grenzing (viewed on November 26, 2018)
4. ^ Research thriller: Columbus' grave identified. In: Spiegel Online . May 19, 2006, accessed June 9, 2018 . 
5. ^ Maria Anna Hälker, Andalusien - Dumont-Reise-Taschenbuch, Ostfildern 2016, page 69

Coordinates: 37 ° 23 ′ 9 ″  N , 5 ° 59 ′ 35 ″  W.