Altars on the west side, Seville Cathedral

The cathedral has 80 chapels and altars. The altars of the cathedral of Seville are an extraordinary set to observe the stylistic evolution of the art of gridwork in Andalusia. These closures protect the enclosures, they are openwork screens through which light penetrates and produce an atmosphere of mystery that modifies, enhances and transforms the spaces of worship and prayer.

Most of the 16th century altars still have contemporary railings and railings. The lack of nearby deposits forced the import of iron. The monumental grille of the Chapel of the Conception stands out from the seventeenth century.

West side altars

Trascoro
The trascoro was carried out by Miguel de Zumárraga in the Baroque style, he designed it in the year 1619 and after the works had been stopped for ten years, they were completed in 1635. It was built in valuable and colorful materials, such as marble and jasper. It is adorned with reliefs and busts of bronze presided over by a Gothic painting of the Virgen de los Remedios clear Italian influence.

Altar of Birth
In the altarpiece there are several works by the painter from the Seville school Luis de Vargas that were made from 1555. The central scene corresponds to The Adoration of the Shepherds, one of his best works with a clear Italian influence. This representation served as the basis for preparing a stained glass window for the Maumejean house which is located in the Chapel of San José of this cathedral. The rest of the paintings correspond to The Annunciation, The Presentation, Saint John, Saint Luke, Saint Matthew, Saint Mark and The Adoration of the Kings.

Altar of Our Lady of the Ribbon
On this altar there is a sculpture in baked clay and polychrome of the Virgen de la Cinta that is attributed to the sculptor Lorenzo Mercadante and is believed to have been made around 1470. The image has a long ribbon around his waist., which symbolizes consolation, remedy and protection.

The origin of this Marian dedication is very old. According to the legend published in 1714 by Fray Felipe de Santiago, a shoemaker named Juan Antonio invoked the virgin for having intense pain in his side. Soon after, he found a tape on the floor, and as he put it on, the pain disappeared immediately.

Chapel of San Isidoro
Inside there is an altarpiece made by Bernardo Simón de Pineda with sculptures by an unknown author representing San Isidoro, San Leandro, San Francisco and San Diego de Alcalá. The outer grille was made in Antwerp in 1660.

Altar of the Virgen del Madroño
It contains a sculptural composition made of polychrome stone in which the Virgin with the Child is represented. At his feet an angel kneeling in admiration. It is believed that the set was made by Lorenzo Mercadante around 1455.

Altar of the Guardian Angel
On this altar hangs the beautiful painting The Guardian Angel, painted by Murillo around 1655.

Altar of Consuelo
Its main element is the painting La Virgen del Consuelo made around 1720 by the Sevillian school painter Alonso Miguel de Tovar.

Mute Child Altar
It is popularly named after an image of the Child Jesus that was carved around 1650, probably by a disciple of Martínez Montañés.

Chapel of San Leandro
A splendid baroque stone carved door stands out, the work of Matías de Figueroa and Diego de Castillejo, which was made in 1773. Inside is an altarpiece by Manuel de Escobar made in 1730 with carvings by Pedro Duque and Cornejo. The main figure of it is San Leandro flanked by San Antonio Abad and San Fulgencio. At the top is the carving of Santo Domingo de Guzmán.

Altar of Our Lady of Alcobilla
On this altar there is a baroque altarpiece in which a sculptural representation of La Piedad is placed. The Virgin has the dedication of Our Lady of Alcobilla and is the one that gives the altar its name. This sculpture group is believed to have been made in Germany around the year 1500, and originally belonged to the private chapel of the Pinelos family. Later it was restored thanks to the intermediation of Canon José Torres Padilla and finally it was placed on the site it now occupies. The iconography has some peculiar details that would be repeated a lot in other later representations. The Virgin takes only one of the arms of Jesus Christ, whose head falls violently.

Altar of the Visitation
In 1566 the painter Pedro de Villegas was commissioned to create the altarpiece for this chapel, which was paid for by the chaplain of the cathedral, Diego de Bolaños, who is represented on the bench with his family.

The central space is dedicated to a painting of The Visitation, that is, it represents the visit of the Virgin Mary pregnant with Jesus to her cousin Saint Elizabeth, who was in turn pregnant with Saint John the Baptist. It is flanked by the images of San Blas, The Baptism of Christ, Santiago and San Sebastián. This set shows us the clear mannerist and flamenco influences that exist in Villegas’ work.

On the bench you can see a relief of San Jerónimo dated 1566 that is considered one of the best works of the sculptor Jerónimo Hernández.

Chapel of the Jácomes
Inside this chapel, known as Los Jácomes or Nuestra Señora de las Angustias, there is an altarpiece with a frankly baroque outline carved by Francisco Dionisio de Ribas between 1658 and 1660, in whose central body is the canvas of La Piedad, also called Our Lady of Sorrows, painted by Juan de Roelas and dated around 1609.

This small chapel was built after 1650, for the veneration of the aforementioned painting that enjoyed great devotion in the city, taking advantage of the emptiness left by the baptismal font that had been moved to its current location, when a door of communication with the Sagrario church. In 1658 the widow and the heirs of the merchant of Flemish origin Adrián Jácome requested from the council the adjudication of this chapel for the burial of the Jácome family and on August 8 the transfer was formalized, in exchange for a sum in cash and the exorno de the chapel.

Seville Cathedral
The Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See is located in Seville. It is Gothic in style. It is the largest cathedral in the world. The Unesco declared in 1987, with the Real Alcázar and the Archivo de Indias, Heritage and, on July 25, 2010, Good of outstanding universal value. According to tradition, the construction began in 1401, although there is no documentary evidence of the beginning of the works until 1433. The construction was carried out on the site that was left after the demolition of the old aljama mosque in Seville, whose minaret (La Giralda) and patio (patio de los Naranjos) are still preserved.

One of the first masters of works was Master Carlin (Charles Galter), from Normandy (France), who had previously worked in other great European Gothic cathedrals and arrived in Spain believed to be fleeing the Hundred Years War. On October 10, 1506, the last stone was placed in the highest part of the dome, with which symbolically the cathedral was completed, although in fact work continued uninterruptedly throughout the centuries, both for the interior decoration, such as to add new rooms or to consolidate and restore the damage caused by the passage of time, or extraordinary circumstances, among which it is worth noting the Lisbon earthquake of 1755 that produced only minor damage despite its intensity. The architects Diego de Riaño, Martín de Gainza and Asensio de Maeda intervened in these works. Also at this stageHernán Ruiz built the last body of the Giralda. The cathedral and its outbuildings were completed in 1593.

The Metropolitan Cabildo maintains the daily liturgy and the celebration of the Corpus, Immaculate and Virgin of the Kings festivities. This last day, August 15, is also the titular festival of the temple, Santa María de la Asunción or de la Sede, and is celebrated with a solemn third and pontifical procession.

The temple houses the mortal remains of Christopher Columbus and several kings of Castile: Pedro I el Cruel, Fernando III el Santo and his son, Alfonso X el Sabio.

One of the last important works carried out took place in 2008 and consisted of replacing 576 ashlars that made up one of the great pillars that support the temple, with new stone blocks of similar characteristics but with much greater resistance. This difficult work was possible thanks to the use of innovative technological systems that showed that the building suffered oscillations of 2 cm daily as a consequence of the expansion of its materials.