Valencia Cathedral - Spain

Esther from Spain contacted me a few years ago saying that she didn't have any postcards from Portugal and she would like to trade with me. Of course I said yes and she sent the card showing the Virgin Square with the Turia Fountain, the Virgin's Basilica and the cathedral. 

The 2nd card was sent by Debs and it shows the Puerta de los Hierros. 

 

 ©  Editorial Fisa Escudo de Oro

Valencia Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic parish church in Valencia, Spain. It was consecrated in 1238 by the first bishop of Valencia after the Reconquista, Pere d'Albalat, Archbishop of Tarragona, and was dedicated by order of James I the Conqueror to Saint Mary. It was built over the site of the former Visigothic cathedral, which under the Moors had been turned into a mosque. Gothic architecture, in its Catalan or Mediterranean version, is the predominant style of this cathedral, although it also contains Romanesque, French Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Neo-Classical elements.

One of the supposed Holy Chalices in the world is revered in one of this cathedral's chapels; this chalice has been defended as the true Holy Grail; indeed, most Christian historians all over the world declare that all their evidence points to this Valencian chalice as the most likely candidate for being the authentic cup used at the Last Supper. It was the official papal chalice for many popes, and has been used by many others, most recently by Pope Benedict XVI, on July 9, 2006. This chalice dates from the 1st century, and was given to the cathedral by king Alfonso V of Aragon in 1436. - in: wikipedia

 

© Ediciones A. M. * Fotografia: A. Murillo

Puerta de los Hierros - Irons Gate, is the most modern door of the three that make up the Cathedral, standing out for its great beauty and value, being one of the few examples of Italian baroque architecture in Spain, as it follows the style of Bernini,

Its construction began in 1703 by Konrad Rudolf, a German architect and sculptor. The name of the door is due to the baroque iron grille that surrounds the entrance hall. 

Over 36 meters high, it gives the impression of being in front of a large altarpiece, despite covering a very small space, as it was designed to be seen from the narrow street of Zaragoza.