Iglesia de San Gil - Seville

Its foundation dates from the second half of the 13th century , that is, almost immediately after the city was reconquered by Fernando III the Holy, and is one of the so-called Alfonsinian churches , built during the reign of Alfonso X the Wise.

The historian Ortiz de Zúñiga considered that the church may have been built on the site of an ancient mosque , the remains of which are still preserved today at the foot of the tower and in the chapel of the Sagrario. It belongs to the interesting group of Gothic-Mudejar churches in the city and the chevet and cross-section have been preserved from the first period.

It was soon reformed in the following century, when the three naves, the two Gothic doorways with pointed arches, one on the Gospel side and the other on the Epistle side, and the tower were built.

It was later rebuilt and enlarged in the 18th century, when the transverse chapel was built, the old wooden roofs were replaced by others and the bell tower of the tower was raised. In the 19th century the choir was renovated and in 1939 the roofs were changed again.

On the outside, one of the details that deserves special attention for its unique character is found in the apse, where the traditional buttresses are supported by load-bearing columns , that is to say columns taken from other previous buildings to be used in the new works being carried out. They were apparently placed during the time of King Peter I the Cruel.

Located near the walls of the Macarena, the church is connected to the basilica of the same name and communicates internally with it through a small connecting corridor.

The interior features 18th-century canvases by Domingo Martínez and Juan de Espinal, as well as a 17th-century crucifix from the circle of Martínez Montañés. In the presbytery there is an old tiled plinth with geometric designs, a work from the end of the 13th century.

Author: Willem Vandenameele