Parish Church of Santa María la Blanca

1557

Imagen de la fachada de la iglesia de santa maría la blanca con el campanario arriba de la puerta

Imagen de la puerta principal de entrada a la iglesia de santa maría la blanca donde se ve los árboles en la misma puerta

It is the only temple in Seville that preserves the remains of the three religions. Later, by privilege of King Alfonso X (1252), it became a synagogue and was consecrated as a Christian temple in 1391.

In 1661 it was decided to demolish the whole church, except the Main Chapel. The original stone pillars were replaced by five pairs of columns, without base or capital, made of red marble from Antequera, carved by the stonemason Gabriel de Mena. The three naves are vaulted. The choir, with mahogany chairs, is situated at the foot of the temple, on a lowered arch.

The sobriety of the exterior contrasts with the artistic richness of the interior. It houses impressive plasterwork with geometric motifs, plants, fleurons, angels, cherubs and even a reproduction of the Giralda, which occupies the entire surface of the vaults, dome and intrados of the arches. These decorations, together with the wall paintings and the skirting tiles, are in the style of the deepest Baroque period. The paintings by Murillo and the images of Nuestra Señora de las Nieves and the Cristo del Mandato stand out.

The church has two small facades on the outside. The main one takes the form of a tower-façade which, together with the Gothic doorway, is what remains of the building from 1391. There are three sections: the first has two semicircular openings without any decoration; the next section contains the bell tower with two semicircular arches framed by pilasters and topped by a broken pediment; and the last section contains a belfry with a semicircular opening framed by pilasters and crowned by ceramic tops and a wrought-iron cross/vane.

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