BAROQUE ALTARPIECE CHAPEL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF SALAMANCA
30 minutesThe altarpiece is a work of great originality, considered an early expression of neoclassical taste, made with marbles and jaspers of different origins. Its composition is articulated in three bays and three bodies topped by an attic, reflecting the double dedication of the space: Saint Jerome and the Immaculate Conception.
The central element of the altarpiece is a canvas by Cacciániga representing the oath made in 1618 by the professors of the University of Salamanca in defense of the Mystery of the Immaculate Conception. This painting also incorporates an ingenious gear mechanism that allows its descent to reveal, during Holy Week, a niche with the monstrance.
Flanking this central scene are two other canvases by the same author, dedicated to Saint John of Sahagún and Saint Thomas of Villanueva. The ensemble is completed with an elaborate decoration of fire-gilded bronzes, among which a central relief dedicated to Saint Jerome, patron saint of the chapel, stands out.
Classical historiography holds that there were two chapels preceding the current one. The first, dated to the early 15th century, would have been located in the east wing, where today the entrance hall from Plaza de Anaya is found. However, some researchers question this hypothesis and believe that the chapel may have always occupied its current location.
The second chapel, located in the south range, was built during the time of the Catholic Monarchs. It shared space with the library, situated above it, for which Fernando Gallego painted the Cielo de Salamanca. In 1506, a renovation was carried out to install a larger altarpiece, which required dismantling the coffered ceiling and relocating the library. The Cielo de Salamanca then covered the chapel until well into the 18th century. That new altarpiece included sculptures by Felipe Bigarny and paintings by Juan de Flandes, some of which are preserved today in the Cielo de Salamanca room of the Escuelas Menores. The chapel was renovated again in the 18th century, between 1761 and 1767, under the direction of Simón Gavilán Tomé, with the collaboration of Juan de Sagarvinaga and Jerónimo García de Quiñones. During these works, two sections of the celestial vault collapsed, and the preserved fragment of the Cielo de Salamanca became hidden when the new vault was built.
Simón Gavilán was also responsible for the new altarpiece, made with exquisite marbles and jaspers of various origins, framing canvases and bronze appliques. In the central section is Cacciániga's large canvas depicting the oath taken in 1618 by the university professors in defense of the Mystery of the Immaculate Conception. The choice of this Marian theme is particularly significant, as in 1760 the Immaculate Conception was proclaimed patroness of Spain and the University of Salamanca. The ensemble constitutes a testament to Salamanca's role as a theological reference in the defense of the Immaculate Conception, long before its dogmatic definition in 1854.
The chapel also preserves important treasures: the niche housing the tomb of Fray Luis de León, a Baroque organ from 1709 by Pedro de Liborna Echevarría, the title of the first Doctor Honoris Causa awarded to a woman in a Spanish university —Saint Teresa of Jesus— and a representation of Saint Jerome above the entrance door, attributed to Simón Pitti.
The management of the chapel corresponds to an autonomous Chapel Board, responsible for its conservation and the organization of worship.
The current altarpiece was built simultaneously with the chapel's renovation and was the work of the same architect, Simón Gavilán Tomé. It is an innovative altarpiece for its time, far removed from the dominant trends in 18th-century altarpiece design, already anticipating neoclassical taste. For its execution, polychrome marbles of various origins —Portugal, León, Granada, among others— were used, thus anticipating the use of these materials that Charles III would promote in the Royal Pragmatic of 1777.
The ensemble is organized into three sections and three tiers, crowned by an attic, and reflects the chapel's dual dedication to Saint Jerome and the Immaculate Conception. The central section is presided over by a large canvas painted in Rome by Francesco Cacciániga, which depicts the oath taken by the university professors in 1618 in defense of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception. This canvas, through an ingenious system of gears, can descend during Holy Week services to reveal a niche where a monstrance with the Sacred Host is displayed, an example of the Baroque taste for scenic effects.
On both sides of the central canvas are two other works by the same Cacciániga, dedicated to saints associated with the University: Saint John of Sahagún, depicted in the Miracle of the Yellow Well, and Saint Thomas of Villanova, aiding the poor. In the upper tier, two canvases by Vicente González are exhibited, representing Saint Thomas Aquinas and Saint Augustine. The attic is presided over by a Calvary made by Antonio González Ruiz.
The high-quality tabernacle is the work of silversmith Manuel García Crespo and was part of the tabernacle that disappeared during the War of Independence. The ensemble is completed by the fire-gilded bronze ornaments, made by Francisco García, sculptor of the Royal Mint, among which the central relief dedicated to Saint Jerome stands out.