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SPAIN | Guadalupe, Spain Travel Guide
Thursday, April 3, 2025
Sightseeing in Guadalupe
Sightseeing in Guadalupe
The Real Monasterio de Santa María de Guadalupe
Having visited the shrine at Guadalupe in 1337, Alfonso XI returned in 1340 to found a monastery here. The Real Monasterio de Santa María de Guadalupe grew out of the small hermitage that housed the icon of the Virgin following its rediscovery in the 14th century on the banks of the nearby River Guadalupe. The Hieronymite Friars (Hermit Order of St. Jerome) were charged with the responsibility of maintaining this holy shrine and saw to it that the monastery was gradually expanded up until the 18th century. Pilgrims who arrived were allowed to stay free for up to three days and, before setting off on their return, were blessed with a new pair of walking shoes. The friars were skillful craftsmen whose iron and silver work is still apparent, yet the monastery fell into disrepair and was abandoned after the secularization of the monasteries in 1835. In the early 20th century the Franciscans took over the monastery and set to the task of restoring it.
The monastery’s Gothic façade, left, with its handsomely carved roses and Mudéjar arches, is sandwiched between two brick towers, one rising higher than the other with battlements and the city’s main clock. Steps lead into the monastery, with its three naves. The sight of the Virgin in the retablo is immediately striking. She is displayed on a Baroque high altarpiece, the tabernacle of which had formerly been King Felipe II’s writing case. Her face is darkened by the years spent underground, but she is elegant nonetheless in her flowing, jeweled gown, with a scepter in one hand and a small statue of Jesus hidden in the other.
The monastery surrounds a large Mudéjar cloister with two levels of arcades framed by arches and a 15th-century pavilion in the center. On the walls of the cloister is a collection of paintings depicting the various miracles for which the Virgin was responsible. Just off it is the former refectory, now the Museo de los Borbados (Embroidery Museum), which displays altar clothes, ecclesiastical gowns and other pieces made in the monastery. Nearby is the old Chapter House, home to the Museo de Miniados, with one of the world’s greatest collection of 14th- to 18th-century choir books, all beautifully illustrated and brightly colored. The Museo de Esculturas y Pinturas houses sculptures and paintings by Juan de Flandes, Goya and Extremadura’s own, Francisco de Zurbaron, whose paintings in the sacristy dedicated to the Hieronymite Friars are perhaps the highlight of the monastery’s art works. In the 17th-century side chapel, known as the Camarín of the Virgin, the beautiful icon can be seen spinning on a pedestal, the huge canvases of Luca Giordano can be admired, as well as the Baroque sculptures known as the “Ocho Mujeres Fuertes,” depicting the eight strong women of the Old Testament.
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