A tour of the Cathedral of Seville — dinktravelers.com

In the heart of the city of Seville lies the majestic Cathedral of Saint Mary. It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, in conjunction with the Royal Alcazar and the General Archive of the Indies in 1987. The building dates back to the fifteenth century but its history began in the twelfth century. During the times of the Muslim Caliphate they ordered the construction of a mosque that would occupy the same terrain where nowadays we find the cathedral. The Patio de los Naranjos (Orange Tree Courtyard), as well as part of the Giralda Tower, are preserved from the old mosque. After the city of Seville was conquered by the Christian armies of King Ferdinand III The Saint, in the thirteenth century, the building was consecrated as a cathedral preserving its original structure. However, it was until the early fifteenth century, once the old mosque had reached a deteriorated state, when the idea of creating an enclosure that corresponded with the Catholic imaginary was raised. Thus began the construction of the actual Gothic cathedral. Tradition tells us that it was planned to become a church so beautiful that those who saw it would define its builders as insane. Now, the cathedral gathers elements from the Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Academic and Neogothic styles, and even some 21st-century aggregates. Therefore, it’s a work of art that reflects the history of architecture as well as the history of the coexistence of religions and cultures.

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