Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família, Barcelona

By dawn on in Barcelona, Cathedrals, Doms, Mosques, Temples, Etc.

Looking up in the 45-meter tall nave

Sagrada Família is the one must-see in town.

Ceiling detail

Apse

This commission was originally for a modest orthodox church in a neo-Gothic style. Obviously, it went a different direction.

Exterior

Gaudì started this project when he was 31 and spent the rest of his life working on it, living in an on-site studio and becoming a recluse. For him, it was more than a job; it was an opportunity to express his spiritual and nationalistic feelings.

Branching columns

Gaudì envisioned the interior as a forest. The columns branch toward the ceiling to give the impression of plane trees.

Stained-glass window

The structure would accommodate 10,000 people. 12 spires representing the 12 apostles would rise to the sky.

Zodiac ornamentation

The progress was slow due to a lack of funds, then Gaudì was hit by a tram and killed. At the time of his death, the crypt, apse, one tower and one façade was complete.

Passion Façade

Eventually, Gaudì’s models were destroyed by anarchists during the Spanish Civil War, who viewed the Sagrada Familia as an offensively conservative relic, not at all in line with the modern direction the city was taking.