The Cathedral of Saint Mary and Saint Julian is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

in the city of

Cuenca Cuenca may refer to: People * Cuenca (surname) Places Ecuador * Cuenca Canton, in the Azuay Province ** Cuenca, Ecuador, capital of Cuenca Canton and Azuay Province ** Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cuenca Peru * Cuenca District, Huarochirí ...

, Spain. The building is one of the earliest Spanish examples of

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High Middle Ages, High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved f ...

, built at a time when the Romanesque style still predominated in the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

. In particular, the cathedral is characteristic of the

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

and Anglo-Norman architecture of the 12th century, of which

Soissons Cathedral Soissons Cathedral (French: ''Cathédrale Saint-Gervais-et-Saint-Protais'') is a Gothic basilica church in Soissons, France. It is the seat of the Bishop of Soissons, Laon, and Saint-Quentin. The construction of the south transept was begun abou ...

Laon Cathedral Laon Cathedral () is a Roman Catholic church located in Laon, Aisne, Hauts-de-France, France. Built in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, it is one of the most important and stylistically unified examples of early Gothic architecture. The c ...

and

Notre-Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris ( ; meaning "Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris"), often referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a Medieval architecture, medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the River Seine), in the 4th arrondissemen ...

are representative examples. Work began in 1182 and was largely completed by 1257, although further renovations continued. In the 15th century, the Gothic ''

chevet In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. In Byzan ...

'' of the cathedral was reconstructed. The exterior was almost renovated in the 16th century. In the 17th century, the

tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

chapel (''capilla del Sagrario'') was built, and the facade and the towers were reformed. The facade was partially reconstructed in the

neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

style in 1910 to repair damage caused when the bell tower (the Giraldo) collapsed in 1902 after being struck by a lightning. However, there are plans and projects to complete the work once a technical consensus is reached. The cathedral is the seat of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Cuenca The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cuenca () is a Latin Church diocese located in the city of Cuenca in the ecclesiastical province of Toledo in Spain.

. It is dedicated to

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

and to Saint Julian of Cuenca, the second bishop of the Diocese and patron saint of the city.

History

On 21 September 1177,

Alfonso VIII of Castile Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (El Noble) or the one of Las Navas (el de las Navas), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at Alarc ...

, "The Noble", defeated the

Moors The term Moor is an Endonym and exonym, exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslims, Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a s ...

after a nine-month siege and conquered the city of Cuenca. The city was made a

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...

in 1183, and work began to build the cathedral on the foundations of the main Muslim mosque. Like several other cathedrals built in Castile in the same period, Cuenca Cathedral is said to have been inspired by Eleanor Plantagenet of England, wife of King Alfonso VIII and daughter of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine. Eleanor's Norman influence left its mark on the building, one of the earliest Gothic cathedrals of Castile along with the cathedral in Avila. French stonemasons began work between 1182 and 1189, with work continuing in the 13th century. The cathedral was

consecrated Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

in 1196 by Saint Julian of Cuenca, second bishop of Cuenca, when only the ''

'' had been built. The high altar was consecrated in 1208 by Bishop

Rodrigo Ximénez de Rada Rodrigo () is a Spanish, Portuguese and Italian name derived from the Germanic name ''Roderick'' (Gothic ''*Hroþareiks'', via Latinized ''Rodericus'' or ''Rudericus''), given specifically in reference to either King Roderic (d. 712), the last ...

. On 13 April 1902, the Giraldo tower (seen to the left of the façade in early photographs) collapsed after a direct lightning strike which also destroyed much of the façade. Several children were killed. Initial restoration of the façade was done in the neo-Gothic style. There are plans to restore the destroyed sections.

Characteristics

Romanesque features of the cathedral date from its origins in the late Romanesque period. Characteristic of the Romanesque style, there were initially five staggered

apse In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...

s, a single

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform ("cross-shaped") cruciform plan, churches, in particular within the Romanesque architecture, Romanesque a ...

and three

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

s in the main body of the building. Thirteenth-century developments include the

clerestory A clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey; from Old French ''cler estor'') is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye-level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, a ''clerestory' ...

, with moulded windows, statues of angels and an oculus. The Anglo-Norman architectural influence can be seen, among other places, in the cathedral's sexpartite

rib vault A rib vault or ribbed vault is an architectural feature for covering a wide space, such as a church nave, composed of a framework of crossed or diagonal arched ribs. Variations were used in Roman architecture, Byzantine architecture, Islamic a ...

ing. The temple is of great dimensions, has a length of 120 meters and 36 meters of height, in its internal central area, occupying an area of 10,000 square meters. In the 15th century, the eastern end was rebuilt to create a double

ambulatory The ambulatory ( 'walking place') is the covered passage around a cloister or the processional way around the east end of a cathedral or large church and behind the high altar. The first ambulatory was in France in the 11th century but by the 13t ...

. In the 17th century, the

cathedral chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. In ...

retained architect

Ventura Rodríguez Ventura Rodríguez Tizón (July 14, 1717 – September 26, 1785) was a Spanish architect and artist. Born at Ciempozuelos, Rodríguez was the son of a bricklayer. In 1727, he collaborated with his father in the work at the Royal Palace of Ar ...

to build the altar of Saint Julian, also known as ''el Transparente'' for the stained glass illuminating and decorating the background of the altarpiece. It rivalled altarpieces with similar features by Narciso Tomé in

Toledo Cathedral The Primatial Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption (), is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Toledo, Spain. It is the seat of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Toledo. Since 1088, it holds the honorific title of Primatial, granted by ...

. A new altar was built in the eighteenth century, with altarpiece statues by Italian sculptor Pasquale Bocciardo. The collapse of Giraldo tower in 1902 caused widespread damage to the cathedral. The reconstruction of the facade by architect

Vicente Lampérez Vicente is a Spanish and Portuguese name. Like its French variant, Vincent, it is derived from the Latin name ''Vincentius'' meaning "conquering" (from Latin ''vincere'', "to conquer"). Vicente may refer to: Places *São Vicente, Cape Verde, an i ...

, completed in 1910, partially repaired the damage. Most recently, the 16th-century cloister has been fully restored.

Iconography

The iconography of Cuenca Cathedral is largely fantastical, with mythological and human figures interspersed amongst plant leaves, stems, fruits and meandering streams. Cuenca Cathedral is distinguished from many other cathedrals by sculptures representing animals unknown to the West, such as the armadillo, puffer fish or turtle, in its Gothic arches dating from the late 15th century, a period in the history of its construction that coincided with the

European colonization of the Americas During the Age of Discovery, a large scale colonization of the Americas, involving a number of European countries, took place primarily between the late 15th century and the early 19th century. The Norse explored and colonized areas of Europe a ...

after 1492. From readings of the

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation, also known as the Book of the Apocalypse or the Apocalypse of John, is the final book of the New Testament, and therefore the final book of the Bible#Christian Bible, Christian Bible. Written in Greek language, Greek, ...

and the "Centuries" in '' Les Propheties'' by Nostradamus, the scholar and architect Rodrigo de Luz concluded that the Holy Grail was saved and preserved in this cathedral. As a consequence, Cuenca Cathedral and all those who take refuge within it would be spared in the final revelation. He identifies the cathedral with the description of the New Jerusalem of the Book of Revelation, on the strength of its 12 gates in shape of bows, each with 12 angels. Each stone angel has a sombre expression and holds a book with the exception of one, who is smiling and holding a goblet. This is interpreted as a hidden reference to the legend of the Holy Grail. It has been claimed that there are other hidden messages in the iconography of the cathedral and of the City of Cuenca, including a coat of arms featuring a cup with an

octagram In geometry, an octagram is an eight-angled star polygon. The name ''octagram'' combine a Greek numeral prefix, ''wikt:octa-, octa-'', with the Greek language, Greek suffix ''wikt:-gram, -gram''. The ''-gram'' suffix derives from γραμμή ...

or eight-pointed star, symbol of the

Knights Templar The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a Military order (religious society), military order of the Catholic Church, Catholic faith, and one of the most important military ord ...

Gallery

File:Catedral-1-fotos-de-cuenca-antigua.jpg, West façade before the 1902 damage File:Catedral Cuenca.jpg, Lateral view File:CastillaLaMancha Cuenca Catedral5 tango7174.jpg, The seven-sided polygonal ambulatory File:Cuenca 2020 - Ambulatory.jpg, Ambulatory File:Cuenca 2020 - Altar.jpg, Main Altar File:Cuenca 2020 - Pulpit.jpg, Pulpit, with the colourful lighting from the stained glass

References

External links

Photoset
on Flickr, includes seven pictures of the cathedral interior

{{Authority control 13th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Spain Buildings and structures completed in 1257 Buildings and structures in Cuenca, Spain Gothic architecture in Castilla–La Mancha