Santa Catalina Church

It sits on the highest part of the village, in a place where tradition speaks of the name of the castle pointing to the sturdy tower.

Many mysteries to discover about the origin of this monument. In the meantime we can enjoy what is undoubtedly the best example of Mudéjar Art in Extremadura.

Visit
CHURCH
C/ Pósicto 2
927 366 083
Exteriors

It is of great historical and cultural interest, as it preserves almost intact the primitive structures of its construction.

Almost all experts agree that it is a fifteenth century building, perhaps a response to the new building that the newly arrived Hieronymites completed in Guadeloupe at the beginning of this century. The dedication to Saint Catherine, patron saint of the friars, indicates a certain relationship in the construction and probably in the sponsorship of the works.

Masonry, irregular quartzite stone and slates, together with what will be the protagonist of the church: brick. Especially inside, in the arches that support the gable roof and those between the three naves into which this body is divided.

From the tower to the apse there is a very curious transition from stone to brick, the former being almost entirely of stone and the latter practically of brick. The plant is basilical, so the sights for this place have always been very high…

The entrance door is also a semicircular brick door and beautifully colored. The spectacular nature of the interior has to do with the general balance, the harmony and the display of pointed arches in the center and between naves and the semicircular arches on the sides and the largest of all that gives access to the apse. The hexagonal pillars help to convey a sense of elegance to the ensemble.

The chevet has a hexagonal floor plan, although it is quite irregular. Made almost entirely of rustic brick. It rises above the central nave. From the middle to the top it has pointed arches of different sizes that were intended to provide a great luminosity to the temple.

It seems that they closed practically all of them a long time ago, leaving only two of the smaller ones. As we mentioned before, the roof in the central part invades the space originally intended for openings in which colorful colored glass would let the light pass through.

The tower presents a strong site stamp and an unusual top with three bell holes. It may belong to the old walled enclosure that surrounded the town, giving meaning to the tradition. It has a large access door that has been covered for centuries.

On the exterior, it is worth mentioning a face embedded in one of the buttresses of the apse, whose origin may be quite remote, and the granite sculpture of Santa Catalina, whose dating is also complex but which was already in 1578.