The text below is an exact transcription of the notice at the door of the church:
It's considered the masterwork of architect Joan Martorell Montells (1833-1906), son of Barcelona and Antoni Gaudi's teacher.
The church has got a Latin cross ground, with dome and heptagonal apse. A peculiar trait to this church is that the bell tower located in front and the main entrance is through the base. The work combines materials from different sources, architectonic language used afterward by Modernism.
The building was built as a monastery for the order "La Visitación de Santa Maria"; in 1878 the nuns moved in, but the church's construction was finished in 1885, on which date it was solemnly consecrated.
During the events of the "tragic week" of 1909 and, specially, during July 1936 (Spanish civil war) the building suffered great damage, and the nuns abandoned the monastery.
In 1942 the monastery was again occupied when it was acquired by the institute "Maristes Brothers" who attempted (previous reconstruction and remodeling) to convert it into a school.
In 1945 was founded the parish which with time passed to the Saleses' temple, and is still there today.
The passing of time has deteriorated the structures, which even became worse due to the fire that took place in the 80's which darkened the walls and the arches.
From 1991 on, the interiors have been properly restored. It's now time to tackle the consolidation and restoration of the exteriors, so this work, so important to our neighborhood, regains its old splendor.
No comments:
Post a Comment