The Crypt of the Almudena Cathedral

The Crypt of the Almudena Cathedral

• 19/08/2013 01:39
• Guillermo Aguilar
• Almudena Cathedral, Churches in Madrid
• 839 comments

In the photo below these lines, it’s a view from South to North, where we have the Almudena Cathedral, and the Crypt.   Below this, is what remains of the old Muslim Wall.

Just below the Almudena Cathedral, with the three neo protogothic semicircular doors on the picture, is the crypt.  Its construction begun on April 4, 1883,  and once inside, the style is of neo-Romanesque and Byzantine influence.

The works of the crypt, took about 28 years, as it opened for worship in 1911.

Inside the crypt, it is all stone construction, and most strikingly are the 558 columns, especially the 50 monolithic columns (one-piece) of the central part, facing the altar.

These columns stand out for their size of 3.28 meters high, and because of the quality of the stone used. All these columns have different sizes, and capital forms.

The first time I walked into this chapel, I was surprised to see the graves on the ground. I had never set foot consciously on a grave before, and still today while making this photos, I tried to avoid stepping on them.

Al fondo, en la parte Norte de esta capilla funeraria, se encuentra este mural que fue encargado por d. Joaquín de Soto Hidalgo y ejecutado en 1977 bajo la dirección de Cesáreo Cambronero López.

In the back side of this funeral chapel, on the northern part, there is this mural that was commissioned by d. Joaquin de Soto Hidalgo, and performed in 1977, under the direction of Cesáreo Cambronero López.

At this temple is another important mural dated back in the thirteenth century, La Virgen de la Flor de Lis, discovered in 1623, which is one of the jewels of this crypt.

Below is a detail of one of the chapels of the crypt.

Tags:almudena, crypt, foto, madrid, spain, travel, walking tours