Apse Façade of the Sagrada Família, Barcelona

Apse Façade of the Sagrada Família, Barcelona

Apse Façade of the Sagrada Família, Barcelona


The apse is consecrated to Our Lady, for whom Gaudí felt particular devotion. It is built on top of the crypt and follows its half circumference shape. Between the walls are seven apsidal chapels with slender windows and pointed arches that recall the Gothic style which Gaudí perfected.

A number of sculptures are arranged on the exterior, dedicated to the founders of religious orders, such as St Antony, St Benedict, St Scholastica, St Bruno, St Francis, St Elias and St Clare; the last has already been set in place. Above the windows are a number of gargoyles which pour out the surplus rainwater that falls on the chapels.

The pediments of the apse, stylised and elongated, end in pinnacles with the initials of Our Lady, St Joseph and Christ, the last accompanied by the alpha and the omega, which recall the beginning and the end of life. On the upper part different natural elements are depicted, such as the palm frond and even ears of wheat or wild grass that recall the ones that grew on the land where the church was built. The towers of the chapels will be pyramidal and topped by a symbolic figuration of the invocations to the Messiah, which are the antiphons of the last week of Advent. On either side of the apse are the side steps, with cores that have an identical structure to the ones in the chapels.





http://www.sagradafamilia.cat



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagrada_Fam%C3%ADlia




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoni_Gaud%C3%AD




Works of Antoni Gaudí on UNESCO World Heritage List
http://whc.unesco.org/pg.cfm?cid=31&id_site=320