Hospital de Tavera

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Hospital de Tavera
Calle Duque de Lerma
Toledo, September 2022

“The Hospital de Tavera, also known as the Hospital de San Juan Bautista, Hospital de afuera, or simply as Hospital Tavera, is an important building of Renaissance architecture located is in the Spanish city of Toledo. It was built between 1541 and 1603 by order of the Cardinal Tavera. This hospital is dedicated to John the Baptist and also served as pantheon for its patron, Cardinal Tavera. Initially it began to be constructed under the supervision of Alonso de Covarrubias, being succeeded by other architects, with Bartolomé Bustamante finishing the work. The remoteness with the old part of the city made it known as el hospital de afuera, since within the walls there already existed the Hospital de Santa Cruz. Currently the building remains the property of the House of Medinaceli and inside it is the Museo Fundación Lerma, which houses part of the artistic collections of this lineage, as well as the Section of the Nobility of the National Historic Archive.” (Hospital de Tavera, Wikipedia)

Santa Maria della Scala

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Santa Maria della Scala
Via Scala
Verona, May 2025

“The church of Santa Maria della Scala is a Catholic place of worship located in the historic centre of Verona, a few steps from Via Mazzini; it is part of the diocese of Verona. In 1324 Cangrande della Scala donated a building in the heart of the ancient city of Verona to the Servants of Mary, after he had made a vow to the Virgin to overcome a serious illness: that was the first of a long series of donations that allowed the Servants to settle in the centre of the city by building a church with an adjoining convent, next to the Franciscans of the church of San Fermo Maggiore, the Hermits of Sant'Eufemia and the Dominicans of Santa Anastasia. However, they encountered strong opposition from the Franciscans of the nearby convent of San Fermo. The construction of the church building in 1329 must have already been well underway, so much so that it was consecrated on 6 December, but the building site (contemporaneous with that of the convent) continued for a long time: in 1341 the first cloister of the convent and the sacristy were built, following the fire that had occurred inside a dormitory three years earlier; in 1362 the right apse of the church was completed, the bell tower was finished and the altar of the Virgin was renovated; in 1371 an organ with its choir had already been placed while a portico was built on the road in front of the church; in 1388 the central apse was finished; in 1416 the left apse was also completed; In 1423 a second cloister was built and the new dormitory of the convent was completed, built across the street from the first.” (Chiesa di Santa Maria della Scala, Wikipedia)

Statue of Isabel II

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Statue of Isabel II by José Piquer, 1850
Plaza de Isabel II
Madrid, September 2022

“That same year, 1868, the statue of Isabel II, commissioned and paid for by Manuel López Santaella and the work of José Piquer y Duart, was placed in the center of the square. A year later, the statue was removed from the center of the square and placed in the Teatro Real, until 1862, when an allegorical sculpture of the Comedy, the work of Francisco Elías Vallejo, was placed in its place. However, Isabel II did not return to the square until 1905. Valentín Gutiérrez de Miguel in the newspaper La Voz of February 3, 1922, gives a long account of the events and vicissitudes of the statue, its various locations and the pedestals needed, as well as the stinginess of the repeated operations to finance the works.” (Plaza de Isabel II, Wikipedia)

Pagello Altar

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Pagello or Santa Maria Maddalena Altar
Santa Corona
Contrà Santa Corona
Vicenza, May 2025

“The majestic altar in the second bay on the left was built—likely by the Pedemuro workshop—in the early 16th century and bears the Pagello family crest at the center of the entablature, commissioned by the family. In 1529, the Vicentine writer Luigi da Porto—author of the novella that inspired Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet—stipulated in his will to be buried in front of this altar. The altarpiece, painted between 1514 and 1515 by Bartolomeo Montagna, depicts Saint Mary Magdalene with Saints Jerome and Paula on her left, Saint Augustine and Saint Monica on her right. The depiction of Saint Monica, the widowed mother of Saint Augustine, is likely a portrait of the patroness Piera da Porto, widow of Bernardino Pagello.” (Santa Corona, Wikipedia)

Custodia de Arfe

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Custodia de Arfe (Arfe monstrance) by by Enrique de Arfe, 1518
Mezquita-Catedral de Córdoba
(Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba)
Calle Cardenal Herrero
Córdoba, September 2022

“The ‘custodia de Arfe’ (Arfe monstrance) is the processional monstrance of the Cathedral of Córdoba, carved by Enrique de Arfe between 1514 and 1518. Its base was made by the Cordoban Bernabé García de los Reyes between 1734 and 1735. Its function is to process the consecrated host which, according to the Catholic faith, is the body of Christ on the feast of Corpus Christi, an annual celebration. Bishop Martín Fernández de Angulo commissioned Enrique de Arfe, a goldsmith of Germanic origin, to create the Corpus Christi monstrance. Arfe had already built one in León and was already working on the one in Toledo. He began work on it around 1512, with the prelate leaving 500 ducats in his will for its completion. Archdeacon Francisco de Simancas also contributed 100 marks. The exquisitely finished work was premiered on June 3, 1518 under the pontificate of Cardinal Alonso Manrique, the year in which it was carried in procession for the first time. It is fair to point out that it was not only Arfe who made this magnificent jewel, but that he was assisted in its making by several Cordoban silversmiths (among them Juan Ruiz el Vandalino) who, trained by the German master, perfected their art and were thus able to replace him on his frequent trips to Toledo, where he was also sculpting the monstrance for that capital.” (Custodia procesional de la Mezquita-catedral de Córdoba, Wikipedia)

Francesco Petrarca

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Francesco Petrarca by Luigi Ceccon, 1874
Piazza Petrarca
Padua, May 2025

“Luigi Ceccon is the sculptor of the statue of Francesco Petrarca located in Piazza Petrarca in Padua. The work, carved from Vicenza stone, dates back to 1874 and was erected on the fifth centenary of the poet's death. The base bears the inscription ‘To Petrarca / Five centuries after his death / Padua — XVIII LUGLIO MDCCCLXXIV’, accompanied by three medallions depicting Cola di Rienzo, Iacopo da Carrara, and Laura di Noves. A plaster model by the same sculptor is preserved in Petrarca's house in Arquà Petrarca.” (Statue of Francesco Petrarca, Grok)

Basílica del Cristo de la Expiración

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Basílica del Cristo de la Expiración
Calle Castilla
Seville, September 2022

“The Basílica del Santísimo Cristo de la Expiración (Basilica of the Most Holy Christ of the Expiration), also called the Basílica del Cachorro or Basílica del Patrocinio, is a Catholic temple located in the Triana neighborhood of the city of Seville (Andalusia, Spain). The original Chapel of Sponsorship dates back to the late 17th century. In 1689, the Brotherhood of Sponsorship and that of Christ of the Expiration merged here, giving rise to the current Pontifical, Royal and Illustrious Brotherhood and Confraternity of Nazarenes of the Most Holy Christ of the Expiration and Our Mother and Lady of Sponsorship in Her Pain and Glory. The current chapel consists of two temples adjoining each other. The first of these temples dates from the 17th century, and was renovated around the middle of the following century, following the Lisbon earthquake of 1755.” (Basílica del Cristo de la Expiración, Wikipedia)