Church of Santa Catalina

Español Inglés Francés Alemán

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Church of Santa Catalina

16th – 17th centuries. No mass currently. Closed to the public.

The Dominican convent of Santa Catalina Mártir was founded on May 8th, 1558 at the request of M. Juan Téllez Girón, who dies the following day.

The convent presents a mainly blind façade with two entrances, as was customary in the convents of nuns. The main one is made of bricks, finished in 1664, and it has the image of Santa Catalina, with the wheel of the martyrdom, in the niche of the pediment.

The church was built during the 17th century, although the structure was transformed in the 18th. Its single nave is covered by a barrel vault, and the main chapel, with a semi-spherical dome on pendentives. The main altarpiece is baroque in style, and was contracted with the carver Juan Guerra in 1765. On the sides, it presents the sculptures of San Miguel and the placing of San Ildefonso’s cassock; and in the centre, the image of Santa Catalina. On the top, we can see the sculptures of San Francisco and Santo Domingo framing the image of a crucified Christ. The walls of the church are covered with six baroque altarpieces from the 18th century. The chorus is arranged at the foot of the nave, with very original stalls. The sacristy of the church is situated in front of the entrance, and it is covered with a tile wainscot from the 18th century similar to those in the monastery of La Encarnación, representing bullfighting and hunting scenes.