San Bartolomé Chapel

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Utrera. Fachada de la Capilla de San Bartolomé

Utrera. Marco de la fachada de la Capilla de San Bartolomé

Utrera. Escrito de la fachada de la Capilla de San Bartolomé

Utrera. Puerta de la Capilla de San Bartolomé

Commonly known as the Chapel of Jesus the Nazarene, it was part of the Dominican convent of Saint Bartholomew, funded by Bartolomé López de Marchena. The convent, which was founded in 1542, was dedicated to the care and well-being of the body and spirit. The chapel was built in the 17th century and underwent extensive renovations in the second half of the 18th century.

This small, single-nave temple is covered by a barrel vault with lunettes between barrel arches. The presbytery is crowned with an additional dome.
The main altarpiece, presided by the image of Jesus the Nazarene, is in the presbytery. This statue was made by the famous sculptor Marcos Cabrera in 1597. The altarpiece also holds sculptures of various saints, including Saint John, Saint Luke, Saint Matthew, Saint Peter and Saint Bartholomew, the chapel’s titular image.

Although the chapel was made in the typical baroque style in vogue at the time, its exterior is extremely plain, as it only has a small façade (at the west end). This façade is taken over by a very austere portal and a wide entranceway, which allows the passage of the processional floats, topped with a very, shallow arch. This space is flanked by two solemn pilasters that support a straight, broken pediment with a ceramic altarpiece with the image of Jesus the Nazarene in the centre. The ensemble is crowned with a straight pediment.

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