Palma de Mallorca Cathedral
- MALLORCA
Palma de Mallorca Cathedral
Mallorca Cathedral was built between 1230 and 1600 and thus has parts that are Renaissance despite most of the building is Gothic. Locals from Mallorca refer to the Cathedral as “La Seu”. La Seu is the most impressive building in the city of Palma de Mallorca and one of the best Gothic cathedrals in Spain. It keeps many anecdotes and secrets, like the intervention of Antoni Gaudi in its completion.
Mallorca in 1 day with Sa Calobra and vintage train
Sa Calobra from Soller by boat
Palma de Mallorca Cathedral
History of the Cathedral of Mallorca
The history of the cathedral of Mallorca is closely linked to the reconquest of the city Mallorca by the Crown of Aragon. The idea of a Cathedral started as a promise King Jaime I did after he saved his life from a shipwreck.
As it is the case for many other Cathedrals in Spain, the Mallorca cathedral was built in the place where an ancient Mosque stood.
But ending the cathedral took centuries. This is not an exception among many cathedrals, but few constructions took so long as the one of the Cathedral of Mallorca. At the end of the XVI century, the first finished version of the cathedral was available, but between the XVII and XVIII centuries, the interior was changed.
This explains the prominent use of baroque in a gothic cathedral. An earthquake in 1851 implied the reconstruction of the main façade, but this was not the end! During the beginning of the XXth century, Antoni Gaudi adapted part of the interior of the cathedral to improve its liturgical purposes. The last contribution from Miquel Barcelo is from the XXI century. He designed and deployed an enormous 300 square-meter polychrome mural that is today one of the highlights of the cathedral.
How big is the Cathedral of Palma de Mallorca?
The cathedral’s proportions alone make an immediate impression on visitors. It is 6,600 square meters, holds 87 gothic glasses and 7 rose-windows (2 of them are quite impressive and one of them is the largest of all Rose-windows in the world!)
The cathedral´s vault is among the highest in Europe at 44 meters high. This is just one meter below the Milan Cathedral.
Highlights of the Mallorca Cathedral
Outside the cathedral, the Puerta de la Mirador with late Gothic carvings and the Northern portal, the Puerta de la Na are worth seeing.
Inside the Cathedral. There are 16 chapels. the Capilla Real and the Capilla de la Trinidad have tombs of Mallorcan kings and most of the chapels have splendid baroque altars.
The interior is stunning and a surprise awaits the visitor: Antoni Gaudi, the mastermind behind the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, worked between 1904 and 1912 on the interior of the Cathedral, especially in the Altar, but disagreements with the local contractor ended the cooperation and his project unfinished. We are however lucky since a twisting, eccentric structure hangs from the ceiling at the front altar.
The Cathedral holds a museum (free access) with religious artwork.