| Cathedral of La Laguna | |
| Location | San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Tenerife |
|---|---|
| Country | Spain |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Architecture | |
| Style | Neoclassical, Neogothic, Renaissance |
| Groundbreaking | 1904 |
| Completed | 1915 |
The Cathedral of San Cristóbal de La Laguna or Catedral de Nuestra Señora de los Remedios (Santa Iglesia Catedral de San Cristóbal de La Laguna in Spanish) is a Catholic cathedral in Tenerife, Spain. Begun in 1904 and completed in 1915, it is dedicated to the Virgin of Los Remedios. This is one of the most important temples of the Canary Islands.[1]
Located in the city of San Cristóbal de La Laguna (Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain). In this temple lie the remains of Alonso Fernandez de Lugo, conqueror of the island and founder of the city. The cathedral is located in the historic center of the city of La Laguna, declared World Heritage Site in 1999 by UNESCO.
Styles of the cathedral: Neoclassical, Neo-Gothic and Renaissance. Every year the statue of Cristo de La Laguna is carried in a solemn procession to the cathedral where he stayed a few days before returning to its sanctuary also located in this city.
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In 1511 on the site of the current building (Plaza of Albino Monk) a hermitage was built, which was replaced in 1515 with a major construction dedicated to the Virgin of the Remedies of Mudejar style, with a tower added in 1618. The temple became a cathedral in 1819, when the new diocese of La Laguna was created. The front, neoclassic, dates back to 1825; the current structure was constructed between 1904 and 1916 and is of Neo-Gothic style. Inside there is a notable pulpit of Carrara's Italian marble carved by Pasquale Bocciardo which departs from the set of Mazuelos's Altarpiece. In addition there are valuable works by Cristóbal Hernández de Quintana, Luján Perez and Fernando Estévez. The cathedral has three wide aisles and an ambulatory (unique in the Canary Islands) which surrounds the chancel, or altar. These elements give the interior of the cathedral a typical medieval European feel in contrast with the colonial style of the exterior.
The cathedral was constructed from concrete, one of the first buildings in Spain to use a material which is now used extensively in a wide range of buildings. Unfortunately, having been a pioneer in this field, the technology was not fully developed; as a result it developed numerous faults which required large amounts of repair and improvement work.
In the era during which the building was constructed and dedicated as cathedral, the capital of the island was the city of San Cristóbal de La Laguna; the diocesan headquarters still remain in that city. This is the reason that the cathedral was built there and not in the current capital of the island (Santa Cruz de Tenerife). The image of the Holiest Cristo de La Laguna moves up to the cathedral every year, where it remains for a few days on the occasions of the holy days in September and Holy Week.