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Basilica of Santa Maria del Mar

Santa Maria del Mar is a church in the Ribera district, built between 1329 and 1383 and considered one of the purest works of Catalan Gothic. The first stone was laid by Alfonso IV of Aragon on 25 March 1329 and the works were directed by Berenguer de Montagut and Ramon Despuig. It was financed mostly by the residents of the port and the Ribera, and the bastaixos, the dockers, carried the stone on their shoulders from the Montjuïc quarries. It has three naves without a transept, with widely spaced octagonal columns and rib vaults, which gives an open and luminous space. The present rose window is in the flamboyant Gothic style: the original fell in the earthquake of 1428 and was replaced around 1459. A fire in 1936 destroyed the Baroque furnishings, but not the structure. The novel Cathedral of the Sea, by Ildefonso Falcones, made it known beyond Catalonia.

Things to do at Basilica of Santa Maria del Mar: 4 missions

• Look at the flamboyant rose windowLook at the church's rose window: the original collapsed in the earthquake of 1428 and the present one, in flamboyant style, was made around 1459.
• Spot the FC Barcelona crestAfter the fire of 1936 the club helped with the restoration in exchange for its crest appearing in a stained-glass window. Walk past the basilica's windows until you find the crest.
• Climb the towers and the terracesWith the cultural visit ticket, go through the levels of the roof and the towers to see the Ribera, the Born and the port from above.
• Size up the central nave by eyeStand in the middle of the central nave and look at the octagonal columns, about 13 metres apart, the most widely spaced in a European Gothic church according to Wikipedia.

Near Basilica of Santa Maria del Mar

Source: Web oficial - Santa Maria del Mar