The view from the top of Seville Cathedral’s bell tower, the Islamic-inflected Giralda, is one of the Andalucían capital’s most striking sights.
The cloudless sky adds a shimmer to the brown and white shades of the city’s architecture. Down below, the distant clip-clop of horse-drawn carriages resonates on the Plaza del Triunfo. And some who climb to the top of Seville Cathedral report bewilderment as they try to process the centuries of history echoing from the edifice’s past.
Legend has it the church authorities wanted to create a building so large, ‘as to make future generations think we were mad’. A tour of the cathedral does nothing to dispel that.
For some, the most enigmatic aspect remains the burial site of Christopher Columbus.
Originally buried in Havana, the authorities transferred his remains to Spain in 1492. A sculpted tomb, held aloft by four ornate figures, houses his corporeal form.
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This situation became a controversial topic. Doubts still stand over the tomb’s authenticity.
However, to the casual observer, swept away by the building’s scale, the idea of a major historical figure buried within its walls flows nicely with the large scale of the structure.
Unsurprisingly, UNESCO named Seville Cathedral a World Heritage Site.
Heritage of Seville Cathedral
Its splendid interior hosts many chapels, treasures, sculptures and relics.
Stained glass windows cast light on the five-aisled interior and the choir area of the principal transept.
The golden Retablo Mayor, the 26-metre-tall altarpiece in the main chapel, catches the most eyes. These same eyes trail the piece as it seemingly stretches up the building’s vaulted ceiling. Hundreds of sculpted figures line its carved panels, telling stories from the life of Christ.
A further sensory burst comes from a walk through the chapel into the orange tree courtyard, the Patio de Los Naranjos. There, the green leaves of the trees set out in a grid formation combine magnificently with sky’s deep blue above. Oranges, the courtyard’s namesake, add delightful pips of colour to the space.
The sun casts a new light on the cathedral’s exterior. So doing, it picks out new elements of restrained grandeur.
Most notable is La Giralda, the 42-metre high minaret now converted to a bell tower. Its interlaced arches show the Islamic influences which went into the cathedral’s design. The arches also clearly show the site’s former life as a mosque.
And once visitors reach the top of the tower, another grand view presents itself.
A 360-degree panorama sweeps around Seville. A striking bird’s-eye view of the cathedral’s buttresses and the courtyard. The view stretches to the waffle-like Metropol Parasol and catches a glimpse of the equally grand Alcazar, the Royal Palace, next door.
The feeling is mesmeric, the atmosphere respectful. Down below, the bell makes a satisfying clang, and the hubbub of Seville continues. As it has done for centuries, Seville Cathedral stands guard in the city’s heart, a symbolic sentinel safeguarding aeons of heritage.
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