Sightseeing in Salamanca

Plaza Mayor

Salamanca lays claim to the most attractive town square in all of Spain; only a Madrileño would dare opine al contrario. It is situated in the very center of the city’s Casco Antiguo, making it a hub of activity at all hours. Roving bands of musicians play brass, guitars and accordions to sangria-sipping tourists seated at outdoor tables; half-wit performers fumble their latest tricks; amateur photographers struggle to capture the great Baroque square in one click of the shutter.

The Plaza Mayor was commissioned by Felipe V as a gift to the city in gratitude for the Salamantinos’ support of the Bourbons during the Spanish War of Succession. From 1729 to 1755 Alberto Churriguera oversaw its construction – an uninterrupted ground-floor arcade with 88 arches defining the imperfectly square perimeter with a four-story façade highlighted by the city’s Ayuntamiento (town hall). Granite accents set off the Villamayor stone quarried from the nearby town and are seen throughout the city, giving Salamanca that famous golden hue in sunlight. The stone, long favored by the locals for its malleability, is the key component of the Salamanca plateresque style. The pabellónes (pavilions) connected to the Ayuntamiento feature medallions with bas-reliefs depicting the Spanish monarchs from Alphonso IX to Carlos III, conquistadores Hernán Cortez, Pizarro and one Don Xptova Colón (otherwise known as Christopher Columbus), along with other illustrious figures, including El Cid and Santa Teresa.

Catedral Nueva

With the city growing and the Catedral Vieja threatening to collapse, the Catedral Nueva was begun in 1513. Not completed until the 18th century, the resulting cathedral was predominantly of Gothic styling with plateresque and Baroque touches. An early plan had included two towers, but the Lisbon earthquake of 1755 foiled that plan. The lone Baroque tower is modeled after the one atop Toledo’s cathedral.

In the main chapel notice the choir stalls adorned with figures of saints and the pelican-shaped lectern. Among the smaller chapels, the Capilla Dorada (golden chapel) houses a Romanesque carving which El Cid is said to have taken with him during his exile by King Alfonso VI. The exile was the result of El Cid’s having led an unauthorized military raid into Moorish-controlled Toledo in 1081.

Before entering the Catedral Viejo, look up for the astronaut. Yes, astronaut. The controversial space explorer was added by a group of humorous stonemasons hired to repair the jambs that had grown brittle over the course of 400 years.

Catedral Vieja

The Old Cathedral is accessed through the new one. The construction of Salamanca’s Catedral Vieja was begun in 1150, soon after the Christians had run the Moors out of the city, and completed in the 13th century. It originally conformed to the traditional cruciform ground plan, but once the Catedral Nueva was tacked onto it, it lost that shape. The Romanesque styling makes for an interesting contrast to the much larger Gothic cathedral adjoining it. The reredos of the main altar sports 53 panels painted by Nicholas of Florence in the 15th century narrating the life of Jesus. Over the altar is a wooden effigy with bronze head and hands of the Virgin of La Vega (fertile plain), Salamanca’s patron saint.

The dome above the transept is well known by Salamantinos as the Torre del Gallo for the rooster that sits atop it. If you notice a young man or woman pacing nervously back and forth in the cathedral, pay no mind. Doctoral candidates from the University of Salamanca spend their nerve-wracking pre-examination night in the cathedral’s St. Barbara Chapel.