Salamanca Cathedral
1 hour
The Salamanca Cathedral complex offers visitors a unique treasure of nine centuries of history and religious art, which can be explored in perfect continuity. The Cathedral is a fundamental part of the city of Salamanca, a World Heritage Site, without which it is impossible to truly understand it.
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Free visit price
- Individual - 10.00 €
- Estudiantes - 9.00 €
- Jubilados - 9.00 €
- Discapacitados reducida - 9.00 €
- Familias numerosas adultos - 9.00 €
- Peregrinos - 9.00 €
- Grupos (Número mínimo: 20) - 7.00 €
- Niños (Edad máxima: 16) - 7.00 €
- Desempleados - 6.00 €
- Niños familias numerosas - 6.00 €
- Niños hasta 6 años - 0.00 €
- Clero - 0.00 €
- Residentes diocesis salamanca - 0.00 €
- Discapacitados superior 65 porciento - 0.00 €
The New Cathedral was built between 1513 and 1733, preserving the Old Cathedral. Initially, they thought of demolishing the latter, although the criterion of keeping it open for worship while the new one was being built prevailed. When the works finished in the 18th century, they reconsidered the idea of destroying it, and for that reason, it is currently preserved. Nevertheless, the south wall of the New Cathedral rests on the north wall of the old one, which had to be reinforced towards the interior of the ancient temple, whose side aisle was partially reduced with the new construction.
The idea of building a new cathedral arose in the 15th century due to the city's demographic growth, especially due to the strong attraction of the University. Therefore, the Old Cathedral seemed at that time «small, dark, and low». They had the support of Ferdinand the Catholic, who in 1509 ordered the architects who had worked in Toledo and Seville, Antón Egas and Alonso Rodríguez, to go to Salamanca to draw up plans for the new temple.
The cathedral, after various discussions, was designed parallel to the old one, built with Villamayor freestone and in Gothic style. It has a rectangular plan, with three naves and two more of niche chapels. Initially, the chancel was to end in an ambulatory and polygonal apses, but finally, the project would be changed to the current one, which finishes the temple with a rectangular chancel creating a hall-type plan. The first stone was laid in 1513, with Francisco de Bobadilla being Bishop of Salamanca.
During almost the entire 17th century, the works were halted and resumed again in the 18th century, until their completion in 1733. The cathedral suffered the devastating effects of the Lisbon earthquake, which occurred on November 1, 1755, with visible signs still remaining in the cracks and broken stained glass windows. After the earthquake, the dome had to be rebuilt (by Juan de Sagarvinaga) and the bell tower reinforced, which was more slender, very similar to that of Segovia Cathedral. The bell tower suffered severe damage during the earthquake, leaning and even threatening ruin. After consulting several architects who recommended its demolition, it was finally Baltasar Dreveton who proposed banding it with 8 tensioned chains and cladding it with stone in the form of a talus up to the bell chamber (about 40 meters from the ground). Jerónimo García de Quiñones and Manuel de los Ríos were in charge of the direction of this work. This is how it can be seen today, clad in stone and leaning to one side due to the effect of the Lisbon earthquake. This catastrophe is currently remembered with the tradition of the «Mariquelo» on October 31.
Around 1812, the French occupation army demolished the block of houses located north of the cathedral, creating the current Anaya square and highlighting the north façade, which was not prepared for exhibition and was rather plain. This fact has led to the most well-known photos of the cathedral being taken from this side, overshadowing the main façade, which is much more interesting but located on a narrow street without enough space to get good photographs.
In 1887 the temple was declared a National Monument and in 1999 a Protected Environment.
The idea of building a new cathedral arose in the 15th century due to the city's demographic growth, especially due to the strong attraction of the University. Therefore, the Old Cathedral seemed at that time «small, dark, and low». They had the support of Ferdinand the Catholic, who in 1509 ordered the architects who had worked in Toledo and Seville, Antón Egas and Alonso Rodríguez, to go to Salamanca to draw up plans for the new temple.
The cathedral, after various discussions, was designed parallel to the old one, built with Villamayor freestone and in Gothic style. It has a rectangular plan, with three naves and two more of niche chapels. Initially, the chancel was to end in an ambulatory and polygonal apses, but finally, the project would be changed to the current one, which finishes the temple with a rectangular chancel creating a hall-type plan. The first stone was laid in 1513, with Francisco de Bobadilla being Bishop of Salamanca.
During almost the entire 17th century, the works were halted and resumed again in the 18th century, until their completion in 1733. The cathedral suffered the devastating effects of the Lisbon earthquake, which occurred on November 1, 1755, with visible signs still remaining in the cracks and broken stained glass windows. After the earthquake, the dome had to be rebuilt (by Juan de Sagarvinaga) and the bell tower reinforced, which was more slender, very similar to that of Segovia Cathedral. The bell tower suffered severe damage during the earthquake, leaning and even threatening ruin. After consulting several architects who recommended its demolition, it was finally Baltasar Dreveton who proposed banding it with 8 tensioned chains and cladding it with stone in the form of a talus up to the bell chamber (about 40 meters from the ground). Jerónimo García de Quiñones and Manuel de los Ríos were in charge of the direction of this work. This is how it can be seen today, clad in stone and leaning to one side due to the effect of the Lisbon earthquake. This catastrophe is currently remembered with the tradition of the «Mariquelo» on October 31.
Around 1812, the French occupation army demolished the block of houses located north of the cathedral, creating the current Anaya square and highlighting the north façade, which was not prepared for exhibition and was rather plain. This fact has led to the most well-known photos of the cathedral being taken from this side, overshadowing the main façade, which is much more interesting but located on a narrow street without enough space to get good photographs.
In 1887 the temple was declared a National Monument and in 1999 a Protected Environment.
The Cathedral is, along with that of Segovia, one of the last two Gothic cathedrals built in Spain. The New Cathedral was constructed, continuing with the late Gothic of its origins, between the 16th and 18th centuries, although at the end of the 16th century the chancel, conceived with a Gothic ambulatory, was changed to a flat one, and during the 18th century two elements were added that strikingly broke with the predominant style of the temple: a Baroque dome over the crossing and the upper bodies of the bell tower. This bell tower is 93 meters high.
The plan and elevation of the building maintain a Gothic uniformity, and the exterior presence of flying buttresses and buttresses, as well as the interior elevation of the naves, attest to this.
The interior of the New Cathedral is very similar to that of Seville Cathedral. However, despite the side naves not being at the same height as the central one, following the typical Gothic «ad triangulum» scheme, the church gives an impression of great spaciousness and luminosity due to the height compensation and the achievement of the interior space. The triforium, typical of constructions from the late Romanesque period, is replaced by two continuous galleries around the entire perimeter of the cathedral and on two levels, which allows the side naves to be raised even further. The pillars bear the weight of the vaults where each of their ribs descends to the floor along the pillar in a slender colonnette that helps to unload the weight. The vaults have all kinds of combinations of ribs, liernes and tiercerons, which make them very attractive due to their variety and complexity of workmanship.
North side nave
The New Cathedral has a plan with three naves and two more niche chapels, which were completed in 1520 by Juan Gil de Hontañón for those on the left and Juan de Álava for those on the right. In 1538, Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón became the master builder of the cathedral, after the death of his father Juan Gil de Hontañón. Initially, an ambulatory was planned for the chancel and polygonal apses, but the delay in the work led to a change in criteria for a flat chancel, a decision made in 1584 by the then master architect Juan Ribero de Rada, following the chancel model designed by Juan de Herrera in Valladolid Cathedral. In 1588, the Cantabrian master Juan de Nates was called for the continuation of the works.
The original dome/lantern tower was erected by Joaquín Churriguera when the works resumed, after being halted for almost the entire 17th century due to lack of budget. It was completed in 1725 and seems to have been similar to that of Burgos Cathedral, with ribbing and Baroque decoration. The Lisbon earthquake of 1755 cracked the central dome, which was replaced by a neoclassical one made by the architect Juan de Sagarvinaga, and this is the one that can be seen today.
The plan and elevation of the building maintain a Gothic uniformity, and the exterior presence of flying buttresses and buttresses, as well as the interior elevation of the naves, attest to this.
The interior of the New Cathedral is very similar to that of Seville Cathedral. However, despite the side naves not being at the same height as the central one, following the typical Gothic «ad triangulum» scheme, the church gives an impression of great spaciousness and luminosity due to the height compensation and the achievement of the interior space. The triforium, typical of constructions from the late Romanesque period, is replaced by two continuous galleries around the entire perimeter of the cathedral and on two levels, which allows the side naves to be raised even further. The pillars bear the weight of the vaults where each of their ribs descends to the floor along the pillar in a slender colonnette that helps to unload the weight. The vaults have all kinds of combinations of ribs, liernes and tiercerons, which make them very attractive due to their variety and complexity of workmanship.
North side nave
The New Cathedral has a plan with three naves and two more niche chapels, which were completed in 1520 by Juan Gil de Hontañón for those on the left and Juan de Álava for those on the right. In 1538, Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón became the master builder of the cathedral, after the death of his father Juan Gil de Hontañón. Initially, an ambulatory was planned for the chancel and polygonal apses, but the delay in the work led to a change in criteria for a flat chancel, a decision made in 1584 by the then master architect Juan Ribero de Rada, following the chancel model designed by Juan de Herrera in Valladolid Cathedral. In 1588, the Cantabrian master Juan de Nates was called for the continuation of the works.
The original dome/lantern tower was erected by Joaquín Churriguera when the works resumed, after being halted for almost the entire 17th century due to lack of budget. It was completed in 1725 and seems to have been similar to that of Burgos Cathedral, with ribbing and Baroque decoration. The Lisbon earthquake of 1755 cracked the central dome, which was replaced by a neoclassical one made by the architect Juan de Sagarvinaga, and this is the one that can be seen today.
They were designed with a unique model, with the chancel wall reserved for the altar or altarpiece, and arcosolia, originally intended for burials, opening in the other walls. They are covered with various star vaults. The grilles that close them are of different styles and qualities, depending on their construction period. Also noteworthy are the tile frontals that decorate some altars.