San Andrés, in translation, St Andrew is a
Gothic-style,
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
church located in
Calatayud
Calatayud (; 2014 pop. 20,658) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Province of Zaragoza, within Aragón, Spain, lying on the river Jalón (river), Jalón, in the midst of the Sistema Ibérico mountain range. It is the second-largest ...
, region of
Aragon
Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...
, Spain.
History
The church was commissioned in the 12th century after the
Reconquista
The ''Reconquista'' (Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese for ) or the fall of al-Andalus was a series of military and cultural campaigns that European Christian Reconquista#Northern Christian realms, kingdoms waged ag ...
of the town by
Alfonso I el Batallador. Initially likely of
Romanesque design, only traces of that church remain above the portal and in the baptismal font.
In town, this church rivaled that of the Colegiata of Santa María for veneration and attention. Documents from 1456, note that Farax and Brahem, both surnamed ''el Rubio'' (''the Blond'') and both ''Moors'', signed a contract with the parishioners of the church of San Juan de Vallupie to make
ciborium, no longer extant, that was to resemble that of the church of San Andrés. The bell-tower was built in 1508.
In 1870, the city hall sought to raze the dilapidated church buildings of San Miguel y de San Andrés, while preserving the Tower of San Andrés. In 1966, the church was declared of ''interés histórico artístico''.
Art and Architecture
The church retains its 14th-century
Mudéjar
Mudéjar were Muslims who remained in Iberia in the late medieval period following the Christian reconquest. It is also a term for Mudéjar art, which was greatly influenced by Islamic art, but produced typically by Christian craftsmen for C ...
layout with
Gothic tracery creating elaborate star-shaped geometric lines. The aisles have four chapels: two of Mudéjar design, including the baptistry. The other two were built in the 18th century with gothic tracery ceilings.
The main altar has a Retablo with sculptures of the evangelists Mark and Luke, and two saints. Some panels depict the ''Fathers of the Roman Church'' (Augustine, Ambrose, Hieronymus, and Gregory the Great).
The central panel has a statue of St Andrew replacing the original painted icon, and it is topped by an 18th-century canvas of the ''Immaculate Conception''.
Torre de San Andrés
Like the tower of the
Santa Maria la Mayor in town, the architecture is Mudéjar. In reality, the tower is composed of two concentric towers with a stairwell inside the latter. The inner tower, hollow, houses a small octagonal chapel. It is almost certain that construction proceeded over decades if not centuries, and that the final bell-unit was not complete till the 16th century. The brickwork becomes more highly decorated in the higher stories.
Catalayud city hall, tourism office
See also
*Mudéjar Architecture of Aragon
Mudéjar were Muslims who remained in Iberia in the late medieval period following the Christian reconquest. It is also a term for Mudéjar art, which was greatly influenced by Islamic art, but produced typically by Christian craftsmen for Ch ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:San Andres Calatayud
Andres
Gothic architecture in Aragon
Mudéjar architecture in Aragon
12th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Spain
15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Spain
18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Spain