“With its twin Baroque towers soaring over the Praza do Obradoiro, this monument to St James is a majestic sight, as befits one of the great shrines of Christendom. The core of the present building dates from the 11-13C and stands on the site of the 9C basilica built by Alfonso II, Behind the Baroque façade and through the original Portico da Gloria is the same interior that met pilgrims in medieval times.” Eyewitness” “The grand heart of Santiago, the cathedral soars above the city in a splendid jumble of spires and sculpture. Built piecemeal over several centuries, its beauty is a mix of the original Romanesque structure (constructed between 1075 and 1211) and later Gothic and baroque flourishes. The tomb of Santiago beneath the main altar is a magnet for all who come here. The cathedral's artistic high point is the Pórtico de la Gloria inside the west entrance, featuring 200 masterly Romanesque sculptures.” Lonely Planet

1. Santiago Cathedral
de Compostela
First created Nov 2018. Version 1.0 - 5 Jan 2019. Daperro. London.

2. St James the Apostle
Right : A statue of St
James on the top of
the main Obradoiro
facade.
Legend has it that the remains of St James was
bought to Iberia in 44 AD from the Holy Land. In the
9C came the news of the discovery of St James’
remains in a mausoleum near the site of the
Santiago Cathedral today.
Left : A 12C portrait
of St James in the
archive of the
cathedral.

3. St James the Knight
According to the legend St James miraculously appeared to fight for the Christian army in the legendary battle of
Clavijo, in 843. It was fought between Christians led by Ramiro I of Asturias and the Muslims, led by the Emir of
Cordoba. There is no such battle recorded in history. St James is the patron saint of Spain.

4. In the beginning of the 9C, came the
news of the discovery of St James burial
near the present day church.
The Apostolic Crypt
Today the relics of James the Apostle
and his disciples is stored below the high
altar, in a silver urn.
Right : The altar of the Apostolic
Crypt below the high altar.

5. Medieval Cathedral
In 1075, preparatory work began to build a Romanesque style cathedral on the present site. In 1105 the chapels
of the apse were consecrated where building work started off. The church included several square towers. In 12C,
it was one of the largest cathedral in Medieval Europe.
In this diagram, the façade of today’s cathedral; is on the right of the picture.

6. Christian pilgrimage to the
Holy Land was recognised as
an expression of Christian piety
was recognised in the 4C.
In the Middle Ages people were
encouraged to make
pilgrimages to special holy
places. It was believed that
your sins might be forgiven and
have a better chance of going
to heaven if you prayed in one
of these holy places. Other
went to these places in the
hope of to be cured from an
illness.
Medieval Pilgrimage

7. Santiago Cathedral is one of these holy place. Other examples were Canterbury Cathedral, Notre Dame of Paris,
Chartres Cathedral etc.
Pilgrimage Churches
Santiago de Compostela Chartres
Canterbury
Notre Dame, Paris

8. Pilgrim’s Route
Routes were devised which allowed pilgrims from different parts of Europe to visit Santiago de Compostela. Along
the route, religious services were organised for the pilgrims to take part in worships, guest houses for shelters,
hospitals, to provide care for the sick and to assist pilgrim travellers.
As these routes became established, traders and craftsmen settled along the route for businesses. They in turn
form networks of economic and cultural exchange.

9. Pilgrims arriving in the square
These modern day pilgrims celebrated their arrival in the Santiago de Compostela by singing and playing medieval music.
One of them pinned a shell onto his hat to signify that he was an a pilgrimage.

10. The Order of St James
Diego Velazquez, the painter,
wearing the Cross of St
James.
The Cross of
St James.
The Order of St James is often called the Order of
Santiago. It was founded in the 12C to protect
pilgrims on the pilgrim routes, from the Muslim
Moors. Later the order contributed substantially to
the Reconquesta of Spain.

11. The Platerias Portal, South side
The Platerias Façade and entrance, with the Clock Tower on the right, South side.

12. The Platerias Entrance
The Platerias Entrance was built in the 12C , as part of the original Romanesque cathedral. It is the only façade of
the medieval origin still in place. It was built between 1103 and 1117 on the south side of the cathedral.

13. The Platerias Entrance
At the end of the 11C large scale sculptural reliefs began to be introduced over doorways of Romanesque churches.
They are known as tympanum. It is unusual to have double panels of these carvings. The reliefs were dated to 1101.

14. The Platerias Entrance
This is the more well-known of the two reliefs (on the right doorway), showing The Flagellation of Christ. What
stands out of the reliefs on Santiago de Compostela is the profusion of figures on these reliefs.

15. The Fountain of the Horses
The Fountain of the Horses in the Platerias Square, on the south side

16. Clock Towers & the Holy
Door
The Clock Towers (left) and the Holy
Door (main entrance) of the east
side.
The Clock Town was built in the 17C
(1676-1680) when neighbouring
districts began to develop, providing
an entrance from the south.
The Holy Door only open on the 25
July (Feast of St James), when it falls
on a Sunday.

17. Clock Towers
The upper part of the Clock Tower built to house a bell, a gift from the French King Louis XI.

18. Clock Towers
The soaring Clock Tower as view on
the roof.

19. The Locations
The Platerias Entrance
The Glory Portico
Clock Tower
The twin Bell Tower
Cloister
Treasury
Obradoiro
Facade

20. Medieval Cathedral
Glory Portico
The Glory portico it the original
entrance to the medieval cathedral.
It is lavishly decorated.

21. Medieval Cathedral – Glory Portico
The three arch ways of the 12C Glory Portico marked a high point of medieval art. It depicts the triumph of Christ. As
the majority of the population in the medieval times were illiterate. It is an effective way of telling the story of
Christ, to welcome arriving pilgrims, with such iconographic scenes of Nativity and the Apocalypse. It was the work
of Master Mateo.

22. Glory Portico – Central Arch
Christ on the central arch welcomes the pilgrims with open hands.

23. Glory Portico
Many of the sculpture still have colours on them. Originally the entire portico all the figures were painted (colours
strengthened).

24. Glory Portico – Mullion
A sculpture of James the Apostle on the mullion, beneath the Christ on
the central arch.

25. Glory Portico
Didactic Art of the treatment in Hell.
Another coloured figure on the portico

26. Obradoiro Façade
In order to protect the Glory Portico, it was decided to build a new façade for the Cathedral. Fernando de Casas
Novoa, was chosen for the work. This distinctive facade has given the cathedral a new face with two impressive high
towers.

27. Obradoiro Façade

28. The design of the Obradoiro Façade
Unlike many cathedrals, it replaces the rose
window with a series of windows.
The interior of the cathedral is quite narrow. The
two tower broaden the façade and elongated its
heights. It also includes balconies.
Lavish and detail decorations breaks up the
geometrical shapes and created a rich and lace-
like design.
The façade appears more like the design of a high
altar than more austere and solemn façade of
many other cathedrals
The use of figure sculptures, dotted all over the
facade, as decorations rather than in traditional
line or rows of lines.
The Baroque façade is impressive and
extraordinary, giving the cathedral an distinctive
appearance.

29. Obradoiro Façade
The façade extended beyond the height of cathedral. It is like a display board.

30. Obradoiro Façade
The façade on one of the tower with balcony, niches and statues.

31. Obradoiro Façade
Large glass windows were used to reflect the sky, providing changing colours for the façade..

32. Bell Towers
In the second half of 17C, the
Medieval bell towers were
redesigned with balustrade and
a section, to house the bells.
Then in 18C the whole of the
western façade was redesigned
and redecorated, adding
pinnacles and Baroque
decorations to form the
Obradoiro Façade.
The twin Bell Towers
viewed from the roof

33. Bell Towers
The decorations on the upper section of the tower , including the section housing the bells.

34. The Interior
The interior of the cathedral is narrow and dominated by the Romanesque arches.

35. The Aisle
The arches in the aisle.
Like most Romanesque
churches the interiors are
dark because of the thick
wall. However, the
Medieval cathedral was
better lit with large
windows. However due
the construction of
adjacent buildings added
since, many of the
windows were block off.

36. The Organ
There are two 18C organs installed on the opposite side of the cathedral.

37. The Organ
Painted decorations on the organ.

38. The Organ
Organ pipes sticking out from the wall.

39. The Transept
The transept of the cathedral.

40. The Cupola
The copula or the cimborio allow daylight to come into the cathedral.

41. The Botafumeiro
The Botabumeiro swinging in the air. It is used to purify the
atmosphere during the Eucharist rite.
The Botafumeiro is one of the most popular
symbols of the cathedral. The current one was
made in 1851, with silver-plated brass hanging
from the cupola. It is as tall as a man and
hanged 21.5m below its pivot.

42. The High Altar
The High Altar with its golden colour dominates the interior.

43. The High Altar
The High Altar is more like a structure than a façade. It has two tiers of spectacular ornamental displays.

44. The High Altar
At the spiritual centre of the Baroque high altar is St James with his pilgrim’s staff, in a shrine.

45. The High Altar
One of the several giant angels supporting the roof of the giant high altar.

46. The High Altar
There are several botaumeiros dotted around the altar.

47. Nave Chapels
Jesus dying on the cross.

48. Nave Chapels
The Virgen of Sorrows.

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The
End
Music – Ang The Glory of the Lord. Handel

50. World Architecture