San Telmo (Puerto de la Cruz)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Main facade of the Ermita San Telmo
North facade of the Ermita San Telmo

The chapel (Ermita) San Telmo stands on a rocky elevation at the eastern end of the San Telmo bay in Puerto de la Cruz on the island of Tenerife .

history

In 1608, the first chapel dedicated to Blessed Petrus Gonzales (San Telmo) was built on the west side of the bay, which was greatly expanded in the course of the 17th century and became part of the Dominican monastery. A fire in 1778 destroyed the monastery and chapel.

Today's new chapel was built in 1780 on the east side of the bay in the area of ​​the fortifications that were supposed to protect the bay from pirates at the instigation of the seafarers' guild (Gremio de mariantes). The great flood of November 7th 1826 partially destroyed the chapel. The chapel was not restored until 1870. She was hardly entertained, however. In 1968 it was restored with the support of the Catholic Foreign Secretariat for German-speaking Catholics in order to hold German-speaking church services there. On February 15, 2000, the Ermita de San Telmo was listed as a Bien de Interés Cultural con la categoría de Monumento Histórico by the Canary Islands government .

Building

The building, which was built on a rectangular floor plan, has a gable roof covered with monk and nun tiles. The walls are made of unworked lime-plastered stones. Two basalt entrance arches are the only decorative elements that interrupt the white walls. The gates close at the top with a basket arch supported by pilasters .

The main facade faces west. A two-story bell wall ( espadaña ) rises to the right, with a bell in the lower opening. In the middle of the facade there is a cross above the roof ridge. There is a protruding base on the west and north facade, which is interrupted by the gates. The sacristy is attached to the head of the building and has its own pent roof and a small entrance.

Inside the church you can see a collar beam roof in the Mudejar style . The beams are decorated with geometric figures and some end in volutes . The wall behind the altar is decorated with typical, painted baroque motifs. Various art objects that are not permanently installed belong to the church. The wooden altar shows various golden motifs on a red background. The niche is bordered by two columns with Corinthian capitals . The figure of Saint Telmo, clad in textiles, is about 145 cm high. The creator of the character is unknown. It was donated to the chapel in 1783 and restored around 1950 by Ezequiel de León , an artist from La Orotava . The Virgen de Candelaria and Saint Blaise , both made of wood, are also works by Ezequiel de León. The German blacksmith and sculptor Fred G. Hellwig made a significant contribution to the restoration in 1968 , he designed the chancel, the crucifix made of burned stainless steel and the altar with inscriptions carved in copper.

literature

  • Manuel Hernández González: Tenerife, Patrimonio Histórico y Cultural . Editorial Rueda, Madrid 2002, ISBN 84-7207-134-0

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Manuel Hernández González: Tenerife, Patrimonio Histórico y Cultural . Editorial Rueda, Madrid 2002, ISBN 84-7207-134-0 , p. 186
  2. ↑ Nicolás González Lemus, Melecio Hernández Pérez, Isidoro Sánchez García: El Puerto de la Cruz, de ciudad portuaria a turística . Centro de Iniciativas y Turismo del Puerto de la Cruz, Puerto de la Cruz 2005, ISBN 84-609-7231-3
  3. ↑ a b Boletín Oficial de Canarias núm. 81, June 30, 2000 p. 9038 ff.

Coordinates: 28 ° 25 ′ 3.2 ″  N , 16 ° 32 ′ 44.2 ″  W.