Valencia Cathedral
Valencia Cathedral, at greater length the Metropolitan Cathedral–Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady of Valencia (Spanish: Iglesia Catedral-Basílica Metropolitana de la Asunción de Nuestra Señora de Valencia, Valencian: Església Catedral-Basílica Metropolitana de l'Assumpció de la Mare de Déu de València), also known as St Mary's Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic church in Valencia, Spain.
| Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady of Valencia | |
|---|---|
North-west façade, at dawn. | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Roman Catholic Church |
| Ecclesiastical or organizational status | Cathedral, minor basilica |
| Location | |
| Location | Valencia, Spain |
| Geographic coordinates | 39°28′33″N 0°22′30″W |
| Architecture | |
| Type | church |
| Style | Valencian Gothic |
| Groundbreaking | 22 June 1262 |
| Website | |
| www | |
The cathedral was consecrated in 1238 by the first bishop of Valencia after the Reconquista, Pere d'Albalat, Archbishop of Tarragona, and was dedicated to Saint Mary by order of James I the Conqueror. It was built over the site of the former Visigothic cathedral, which under the Moors had been turned into a mosque. Valencian Gothic is the predominant architectural style of the cathedral, although it also contains Romanesque, French Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassical elements.
The cathedral contains numerous 15th-century paintings, some by local artists (such as Jacomart), others by artists from Rome engaged by the Valencian Pope Alexander VI who, when still a cardinal, made the request to elevate the Valencian See to the rank of metropolitan see, a category granted by Pope Innocent VIII in 1492.
A purported Holy Chalice, believed by many to be the true Holy Grail, is kept in one of the cathedral's chapels.