Holiday apartments Barcelona.

Santa Maria del Mar

Tuesday, 03 August 2010 06:00

Santa Maria del Mar is a wonderful Catalan Gothic church that lies in the heart of the Ribera district of Barcelona and that has a very long history with it being mentioned for the first time in 998 in official documents. The building as we can see it today has been constructed between 1329 and 1383 and was initiated by the canon Bernat Llull.
Its look from the outside appears massive and impressive however, the narrow streets of the Ribera district make it difficult to get a real feeling for the building. The interior as opposed to the exterior seems spacious and is full of light, which is surprising when comparing this impression to the one you obtain from the outside.
However, due to a fire in 1936 most of the artwork that used to be inside the church has been destroyed back then and leaves the interior rather empty. Luckily, some of the impressive stained-glass works have survived though and can still be seen in the building.
Also, it is worth mentioning that the church is the background setting for the famous and bestselling book La Catedral del Mar by Ildefonso Falcones (2006). Furthermore, it is mentioned in the novel El juego del ángel by Carlos Ruiz Zafón.

Address:

•    Plaça de Santa Maria, 1, Barcelona

Opening hours:

•    Monday to Saturday: 9:00 - 13.30 and 16.30 - 20.30
•    Sundays and holidays: 10:00 - 13.30 and 16.30 - 20.45

Contact:

•    Phone: +34 933 102 390 (Basílica)
•    Phone: +34 933 190 516 (Despatx)
•    Web: http://santamariadelmar.es/index.htm

 

 

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