Lleida information
Monuments
SANT JOAN
In one of the most typical squares in the city, we find Esglèsia Sant Joan (church). This Neo-Gothic building dates back to the end of the 19th century and it was designed by Julio de Saracíbar and Celestino Capmany.
EL PEU DEL ROMEU
It is medieval in style but with historicist influences from the 20th century. It was built in 1399 and dedicated to Our Lady of the Snow.
The area has gone through several urban changes, since at first there was an arcade and since the 15th century, a square. The chapel was situated in the former Christian quarter at Muslim times. Nowadays the building worships Saint James, who is yearly remembered on the Saint's Day Eve (24th July) by means of a procession in which children parade carrying candle-lit lights. This site is included on the Catalan route of the pilgrimage of the Camino de Santiago.
The Sculpture of Saint James was made by Lleida's sculptor Jaume Gort and the altar boasts a painting by Lleida's artist Miquel Roig Nadal.
SANT LLORENÇ
It is an essentially Romanesque church, but with Gothic extensions and details. This building, the second important church after Seu Vella, boasts three equally high naves with three apses. The central nave, Romanesque in style, is the most ancient one. The two side naves are Gothic. Its building works started at the end of the 12th century by the sculptors and craftsmen who worked with Pere de Coma, master builder of Seu Vella.
The building preserves four important Gothic altarpieces, the largest of which is dedicated to Saint Laurence, another one to Saint Ursula - probably by Jaume Cascalls -, another to Saint Peter and the last one to Saint Lucia. At the Gothic door in Plaça Sant Josep (square) you can see Berenguer de Gallart's coats of arms. The church, cathedral seat twice, boasts several works of art belonging to Lleida's Museu Diocessà. Some remarkable exhibits are the sculptures of Verge dels Fillols (virgin), from Seu Vella, and the one of Our Lady of the Candle as well as a 14th-century Gothic painting of Saint Blaise, probably by painter Mateu Ferrer. Inside the church there is also the shrine of Ramon de Tàrrega and the image of Sant Crist Trobat, restored by Jaume Perelló.
On 2002 the church belltower was restored. Due to this restoration it has recovered its beauty thanks to the handmade reproduction of the fretwork handrail and the original gargoyles.
SANT MARTI
It is a Romanesque church built on the grounds of a former mosque. It was consecrated in 1186 as the centre of Parròquia Sant Martí (parish). It is a single-naved temple covered with a pointed plain vault, strengthened by 3 arches in the nave and one with a double apse. Throughout history the church has undergone different uses, like housing magnificent academic events of Estudi General, enduring sieges and city wars or becoming military barracks as well as the province's prison.
Prooemium
Nowadays it houses Prooemium exhibition, where you can see several sculptures such as Saint Nicholas and Saint Ursula altarpieces or relieves like the one of the God's Mother of Ager. All the museum exhibits from the 14th and 15th centuries kept and displayed in this church, make up, together with the ones shown in Església de Sant Llorenç (church), the most important and rich collection of medieval sculpture. Besides, this collection includes works of art from Seu Vella, like the three heads of the images at the Porta dels Apòstols (door) and the 11th-century rock crystal chessmen.