Chris Columbus' remains are in a vault here. See below
The amount of art, stained glass, and golden objects here is pretty amazing.
I guess that is why much of it is behind bars. The bars have been there for centuries and form very elaborate works of art themselves.
This golden crown was made for one of the statues to wear on special days if I understood correctly. Supposedly that is the second largest pearl in the world. Not sure if you can tell from the pic but the whole thing is encrusted with jewels. I don't know what the words say.
These are the actual keys to the city that the Moors gave to the conquering Christians when the place changed hands about 800 years ago.
Supposedly the top one has the inscription something like "may Allah always rule".
When it was a mosque the faithful were called to pray 5 times a day. They came in through this courtyard where there was a ritual of washing your feet. In order to accomplish this they made a system of trenches with running water just the right size to dip your foot in. The whole courtyard was planted in orange trees as it is today.
The minaret from which the call to prayer was made still stands and I walked all the way to the top which was no small feat. It is really tall! Rather than stairs there are a series of 35 ramps you ascend in order to get to the top. This was done so that the man who made the call to prayer could ride a donkey up there rather than climb the stairs 5 times a day. The views of the city were great. You can see the bull ring in this one.
And the river in this one.
Here is the orange tree patio from above.
I was so relieved the bells did not ring while I was up there!
My favorite part of the church was the Sacristy.
The dome gave the impression it was God's eye watching you.
There were also depictions of hell and damnation.
It was a very impressive church. The amount of power and wealth on display really was something to behold.
Location:Sevilla, Spain
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