The Convent de las Dueñas of Salamanca !!!

Posted in Europe, Spain

We were back to my dear Spain again !! love it !! We came by car of course and took time to see new areas and old repeat with some of them as introduction to my sons and our dog Rex ! I rented a small house in a off the beaten path country town that was just perfect ! I like to continue the saga of our new road warrior experiences even if now with less in our family, This post is on my latest road warrior tour of wonderful sublime Spain.  Therefore, let me tell you about the Convent de las Dueñas of Salamanca !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.

Salamanca convento de santa maria de la dueñas front dec24

The City of Salamanca is capital of the province of Salamanca located in the Autonomous Community of Castilla y León, and in the kingdom of Spain. In 1988, the Old City was declared a World Heritage for UNESCO, The City is located 109 km from Ávila, 121 km from Valladolid, 123 km from Portugal and 214 km from Madrid.

The Convent of Santa María, better known as the Dueñas, is a female convent of the Dominican order located in the Plaza del Concilio de Trento s/n, The name of Dueñas is due to the fact that it was founded with the intention of being a beaterio in which ladies of the nobility could retire. It consists of a single nave in Gothic style covered by seven vaults of crucery of tercelets, topped in an apse with baroque altarpiece. Outside the church, of great sobriety, the Plateresca cover stands out, with a first double order that supports in brackets and encloses the door, in a half -point arc. Among the pilasters, brackets and canopies to house statues. In the second body, ornate columns escort a niche, where there are an image of the Virgin, in addition to those of San Francisco and Santo Domingo de Guzmán,

Salamanca Convento de Santa Maria de las Duenas front dec24

The Convent de las Dueñas interest of the entire convent focuses mainly on the magnificent cloister, that is the most fantastically decorated in Salamanca, if not all of Spain. built in 1419, which had to adapt its plant at the disposal of the primitive units, so it developed a unique irregular pentagonal plant. It consists of the smaller side is two arches , while others reach six or seven arches in two floors. The lower one has scarce arches on columns and medallions with heads in the fuss, and the upper one is adintelada with columns and shoes. The capitals, of which the sculptor is unknown, are of inexhaustible fantasy and variety and in the eggans were carved monstrous and grotesques.

The median area is supervised by two slender columns and an entablature with a frieze of angels. It is interrupted by an arcade, in the center of which is a virgin and child. The medallions of arcade bits represent the apostles Peter and Paul. On the side there are scrolls and two cartridges of coat of arms, of which the one on the right contains the coat of arms of the Dominican order. The upper end is formed by a shell which is held by putti of angels. Don’t forget to look down: the interlocking diamond pattern on the ground floor of the cloister is decorated with the knobby vertebrae of goats and sheep. It’s an eerie yet perfect accompaniment to all the grinning disfigured heads sprouting from the capitals looming above you. The museum has a fascinating exhibit on Spain’s little-known slavery industry. 

Before leaving the Convent de las Dueñas, in the store you can buy numerous types of sweets: homemade pastes, cream cookies, anise cookies, mantecados, polvorones, muffins, puff pastry and bitterness. The latter are the specialty of the house.

The City of Salamanca on its history : https://aytosalamanca.es/w/historia

The Salamanca tourist office on its religious buildings: https://salamanca.es/es/fondo-armario/cultura-y-patrimonio/iglesias-y-conventos

The Castilla y Léon regional tourist office on the Convento de las Dueñas: https://www.turismocastillayleon.com/en/heritage-culture/convent-duenas

The Unesco world heritage site on old town Salamanca: https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/381/

There you go folks , another wonderful nostalgic, sentimental trip to my dear Spain, Do not know when we will be back, we sure will have this trip in our hearts forever, Again, hope you enjoy this post on the Convent de las Dueñas of Salamanca !!! as I

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

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Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

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