Oh yes another wonderful old town of my dear Spain; this is deep country and our road warrior trips at its best. There are so many towns that will take you a life time to see them all, and each is unique ; I am working on them ! .Once again, glad, found me some pictures in my cd rom vault that should be in my blog for you and me. I go around these towns a lot on my roundtrips between France and Spain, and sometimes wish I could have spent more times in them.The town of Sigüenza is located in the province of Guadalajara, in the autonomous community of Castilla-La Mancha of the kingdom of Spain, Therefore, let me tell you on the Catedral Santa Maria of Sigüenza !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
The Plaza Mayor was commissioned at the end of the 15C by Cardinal Mendoza, then Bishop of Sigüenza. He took advantage of the existing St Mary’s Cathedral, (see pic afar) which was moved to one side of the Plaza Mayor. Its initial purpose was to serve as the setting for the local market, and to facilitate access for the faithful to the cathedral, a gate was built, which is still known today as the Puerta del Mercado or Market Gate. It is rectangular in shape, with an arcade along one of its longer sides, while the other two sides housed residences of the nobility.
The Catedral de Santa María or St Mary’s Cathedral was initially Romanesque-Cistercian in style with a Gothic finish and numerous Renaissance elements in its interior. Its origins date back to January 1124, when Bishop Bernard of Agén (France) conquered the city from the Muslims during the reign of Doña Urraca, daughter of Alfonso VI of León. Work on the cathedral passed through the following centuries under the leadership of various bishops, who built in styles specific to each era, up to the central nave, completed in the Gothic style in the 15C, when the transept vaults were covered under the future Cardinal Mendoza as bishop. The ornamental aspect continued into the 18C. The two large towers of the façade give it reminiscences of a fortress. The main façade is Romanesque, although with later Neoclassical and Baroque additions. It forms three sections, with their respective doors corresponding to the building’s three naves, divided by two sturdy buttresses. On both sides of the main facade, there are two sandstone towers, four bodies high, joined together by a stone balustrade ordered to be built in 1725. The three doors have similar characteristics and are Romanesque in style, the central one called the Puerta de los Perdones or Gate of Pardons, had a mullion dividing the entrance, where an image of the Virgin Mary was placed , It is built with a semicircular arch and archivolts supported by columns with capitals of plant motifs, only ornaments can be seen in the first archivolt of geometric interlacing. The wooden leaves or swing doors are from 1625. Above it there is a pediment with a Baroque bas-relief medallion representing the scene of The Imposition of the Chasuble on Saint Ildefonso and a magnificent Romanesque rose window with twelve spokes from the 13C with tracery drawings to illuminate the central nave,
Inside the Catedral Santa Maria you see the Capilla de la Concepción by El Greco or Chapel of the Conception by El Greco, was completed in 1509. It is in the Flamboyant Gothic style. The portal features a wide, highly molded segmental arch, finely decorated with vegetal motifs in the Gothic tradition. It is flanked by two plain pilasters, their spaces covered with grotesques, and topped by a highly decorated frieze with a sculpture of the Virgin at its center and at the top. A wrought-iron gate encloses it from the outside. The most striking feature is the paintings on the walls, which recreate a world of symbols and allegories. The Renaissance space is a private, funerary alcove that exalts the symbolic city of the Heavenly Jerusalem, the Holy City depicted in the paintings. Wonderful
And another wonderful historical and gorgeous chapel houses the Sepulcro del Doncel de Sigüenza or the tomb of the Doncel of Sigüenza is located in the Chapel of Saint John and Saint Catherine. This funerary monument dates from between 1486, the year of the Doncel’s death, and 1504, when it is mentioned in his father’s will as already completed in the cathedral chapel. The tomb, placed upon three lions, is located beneath a semicircular arched niche, containing an alabaster statue of the Doncel. What is most striking is that it is not a recumbent, sleeping figure, but rather a reclining one-legged figure, with one leg crossed over the other and his arm half-elevated, as if reading an open book. He appears engrossed in reading while resting from military exercises, his legs gracefully crossed and protected by his armor. The figure is dressed in armor and wears the Cross of Saint James on his chest, painted in red, standing out against the white alabaster. The hilt of a sword and a small dagger at the waist are visible. The head is covered with a bonnet that fits perfectly. At his feet, completing the composition, are a grieving child or page and an animal. On the front of the tomb, two pages hold the coat of arms, which is adorned with delicate candelabra carvings. The entire work is polychrome.
The Museo Diocesano de Arte Antiguo or Diocean Museum of Ancient Art is located at Plaza del Obispo D. Bernardo s/n in a beautiful neoclassical palace from the 16C. Known as the “Old House of the Barrenas”,Currently, the entire building is used as a museum. The museum is organized around rooms belonging to the former palace chambers, located around a central courtyard with a portico and Tuscan columns. In addition to the reception area upon entering, we immediately find a room that opens after passing under two beautiful Mudejar-style scalloped arches recovered from a house in the Travesaña Baja neighborhood of Sigüenza.
The Museo Diocesano de Arte Antiguo or the Diocesan Museum of Ancient Art is not located within the Cathedral itself, but in a separate building. Specifically, it is situated opposite the cathedral, in Plaza del Obispo D. Bernardo, s/n. It is housed in what is known as the Antigua Casa de los Barrena or the Old Barrena House, a Neoclassical mansion that belonged for centuries to the Gamboa family. After various uses as hotels and commercial establishments during the first half of the 20C, it was acquired by the Bishopric of Sigüenza and inaugurated as a diocesan museum by Bishop Laureano Castán Lacoma on May 11, 1968. The museum is organized into rooms belonging to the former palace quarters, located around a central courtyard with porticoes supported by Tuscan columns. It houses valuable pieces and has recently been complemented with models and some reproductions of Romanesque and Gothic sculptures. In addition to the reception area upon entering, one immediately finds a room that opens up after passing under two beautiful Mudéjar-style pointed arches recovered from a house on Travesaña Baja in Sigüenza. This room is dominated by one of the museum’s most important works: Zurbarán’s painting of the Virgin Mary as a Child (see pic). Among the wooden sculptures, noteworthy are several Throne of Wisdom Virgins, such as the Virgin of La Sopeña from San Andrés del Congosto (13-14C), and the one that was in the Hermitage of San Bernabé de Hijes (14-15C). Another Virgin known as the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception is an interesting Gothic wooden carving with traces of polychromy, originally from the cathedral. Also on display is a polychrome alabaster Gothic relief from the York School depicting the Descent from the Cross, and two fragments of embroidered fabric of Sasanian origin (11-12C) that belonged to the reliquary casket containing the relics of Saint Librada. It is worth remembering that Don Bernardo de Agen had some of the mortal remains of Saint Librada and Saint Sacerdote brought to his new episcopal see. The first was a Christian woman martyred in the 3C during the Roman persecutions, and her relics were kept in the Aquitaine monastery of Sainte Livrade-sur-Lot. These two luxurious fragments of Persian fabric were part of the relics’ wrappings. One depicts two griffins surrounded by various geometric and zoomorphic elements. The other features a large eagle with outstretched wings, flanked by two circles containing the figures of quadrupeds. Other rooms display important works such as the painting of the Holy Burial, attributed to a disciple of Titian; the oil painting on panel by the Master of Pozancos, which also depicts the burial of Christ; and even a pair of 15C bells with perfectly legible inscriptions.
They said, most important group in the Diocesan Museum of Ancient Art is the 14C Gothic Calvary scene from the now-abandoned village of Villacadima. It is of monumental proportions, polychrome, and gilded. The faces of Christ, the Virgin, and Saint John are highly expressive. An advanced naturalism is evident in the folds of all the garments. In another room of the museum, we find a Romanesque doorway from the parish church of Jócar. Small in size, as befits a rural church, it maintains its harmonious form with four smooth, semicircular archivolts with sharp edges, sparsely decorated with diamond points and small incised squares. The Romanesque baptismal font from Canales del Ducado is a cylindrical basin with semicircular arches resting on columns that frame figures, plants, and animals. The upper part is adorned with undulating plant stems. Two spectacular scale models have been placed in the center of the museum courtyard, reflecting different stages in the construction of the Cathedral: the Romanesque phase and the subsequent Gothic period.
The official Catedral Santa Maria de Sigüenza : https://catedralsiguenza.es/
The official Catedral Santa Maria on the Museo Diocesano de Arte Antiguo : https://catedralsiguenza.es/museo-diocesano/
The town of Sigüenza on tourist areas : https://siguenza.es/pagina/8/33/
The Sigüenza tourist office : https://www.visitasiguenza.es/
The Castilla La Mancha regional tourist office on Sigüenza : https://www.turismocastillalamancha.es/es/destinos/encanto-rural/guadalajara/siguenza
There you go folks, another dandy in the wonderful region of Castilla La Mancha, in country Spain from its foundations. This is a town that should be visited more and will come back,eventually, Again, hope you enjoy this post on the Catedral Santa Maria of Sigüenza !!! as I,
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 