Iglesia de Jesús de Miramar is the second largest church in Cuba. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Cristobal de la Habana. It was begun in 1948 and inaugurated on May 28, 1953. It is constructed in the Romanesque-Byzantine style. Its architects were Eugenio Cosculluela (1893–1978) y, Guido Sutter. The church is located at Quinta Ave Esquina an 82 (5th avenue at the corner of 82nd street),

Miramar Miramar is a place name of Spanish and Portuguese origin. It means "sea-view" or "sea sight" from ''mirar'' ("to look at, to watch") and ''mar'' ("sea"). It may refer to: Places Africa * Miramar, Port Elizabeth, see St Dominic's Priory School ...

, La Habana, Cuba.

Interior

The murals in the church were painted by the Spanish painter, Cesareo Marciano Hombrados y de Onativia (1909–1977) between the years 1952 and 1959. There are more than 266 figures represented in the 14 large murals. His model for the Virgin Mary was his wife, Sara Margarita Fernandez y Lopez (born August 5, 1927, in Havana, Cuba). The historian

Carlos Eire Carlos M. N. Eire is the T. Lawrason Riggs Professor of History and Religious Studies at Yale University. He is a historian of late medieval and early modern Europe. Education Eire received his Bachelor of Arts in History and Theology in 1 ...

, writes in his book ''

Waiting for Snow in Havana ''Waiting for Snow in Havana: Confessions of a Cuban Boy'' is a 2003 book by Carlos Eire and winner of the National Book Award for Nonfiction.

'', "What a church that was, so full of murals depicting the passion of Jesus of Nazareth. Huge, colorful murals, most of them densely packed with crowds and people. The oddest thing was that many of those who had paid for the murals had been included in these crowd scenes." (page 225) The largest

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''ranks ...

in Cuba (with 5000 pipes) was inaugurated on November 22, 1956, in the church. Parts of the organ were brought from Spain, and the rest was constructed in the Church by the Spaniard

Guillermo de Aizpuru Egiguren Guillermo () is the Spanish form of the male given name William. The name is also commonly shortened to 'Guille' or, in Latin America, to nickname 'Memo'. People *Guillermo Amor (born 1967), Spanish football manager and former player *Guillermo A ...

. A

Kilgen Kilgen was a prominent American builder of organs which was in business from the mid-19th to the mid-20th century. History The Kilgen family The Kilgen family's history of organ making supposedly dates to the 17th century, when Sebastian Kilgen, ...

Theatre Organ, originally built for the Cine Encanto in Havana was also absorbed, with its console being expanded and incorporated, evident by its horseshoe shape.

Grounds

In the gardens of the Church grounds is a copy of the Grotto of the Virgin of Our Lady of Lourdes, France, designed by the architect

Max Borges Jr. Max Borges Jr., born Max Borges Recio (July 24, 1918 – January 18, 2009), was a Cuban architect best known for his work in Havana in the 1940s and 1950s. He later moved to the United States. Biography Borges Jr. was born in Cuba, the son ...

and inaugurated on May 13, 1958.

Gallery

File:2007 august Cuba 190.jpg, Mural in church. File:Organ miramar.jpg, Organ in poor condition (taken August 2007) File:2007 august Cuba 189.jpg, Mural in church. File:2007 august Cuba 188.jpg, Mural in church. File:Jesus de Miramar.jpg, Interior of the church looking north File:2007 august Cuba 184.jpg, Main Altar. File:2007 august Cuba 195.jpg, Interior of Church looking south towards the altar

References

*''Cuba - Eyewitness Travel Guides'' (Dorling Kindersley Publishing, 2004) *''Havana'' (Lonely Planet Publications,2001) *''The Odyssey Illustrated Guide To Cuba'' (Guidebook Company Ltd., 1995) {{DEFAULTSORT:Iglesia de Jesus de Miramar 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Cuba Roman Catholic churches in Havana Roman Catholic churches completed in 1953