High Church
The Sagrada Familia is a Barcelona church designed by the great Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi. He started building it in 1882 and if things go as planned the structure will be entire in 2026. Gaudi was a especially religious man.
Building the church was so essential to him, that later in his life he labored on it solely, and even moved onto the construction site and lived there. He died in 1926 and is hidden in a crypt in the church. Gaudi’s other amazing architectural projects in Barcelona and hoteles barcelona have become principal tourist attractions but the Sagrada Familia is his masterpiece.
During the Spanish Civil War and the following rule of Franco not much job was done on the Sagrada Familia. In fact during that period Gaudi’s workshop was burned. Luckily many of his blueprints for the cathedral were saved. Although the models he had constructed of the church were smashed, enthusiastic friends, pupils and supporters painstainkingly pieced them back together.
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One of the reasons it has taken so long to make the church is Gaudi’s insistence that no government money be used to pay for it. The job is being funded solely by donors. These donors include the a large amount of tourists from around the world who pay an entry fee to visit the church each year.
When complete the Sagrada Familia will have a chief sanctuary for worship and eighteen huge high towers. Elevators may whisk you to the top of two of the towers that are already completed for a breathtaking view of Barcelona.
The front of the church is decorated with more than a dozen scenes from the tale of the Birth of Jesus designed by Gaudi. Each tableau is made up of larger than life sculptures. You can see a recreation of the Holy Family’s voyage to Egypt, the visit of the Magi, the engagement of Mary and Joseph and a gruesome depiction of soldiers murdering all the baby boys in Bethlehem.
The back of the church has another set of sculptured scenes. These relate the tale of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. Created by a more modern artiste, but staying true to the plans laid out by Gaudi, these sculptures illustrate Biblical events.
A special element on this part of the church is a huge engraved grid with sixteen squares. Each square contains a digit. There are 321 ways to add four different numbers from these squares to make the sum of thirty three, the digit of years Jesus lived.
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Gaudi loved the created earth and used designs from nature in all his buildings and hotel barcelona. Some of the Sagrada Familia’s towers look like honeycombs. The main sanctuary is supported with pillars patterned after the trunks of giant California redwood trees. Its ceiling is sculpted to look like huge leaves. Natural illumination will filter in from above. Gaudi wanted people to feel like they were sitting in the center of the forest as they worshipped.
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