Lanjaron was originally a Moorish settlement with a mosque. When the Moors were driven out of Spain in the C16th, a Christian church was built on the site of the Moorish mosque. The present church was built at the start of the C17th. There was a major restoration in the C19th as the church was in a ruinous state and the brick bell tower was built.
Inside it is a large church and can seem quite gloomy at first until your eyes adapt to the low light levels. An arcade of sturdy rectangular pillars with tiled bases separate the nave and side aisles. Above the arches are paintings. The back of the church is plain with a small gallery at the west end.
The east end of the church is dominated by the glorious gilded Baroque style reredos which fills the east wall. This was restored in 2007 and looks magnificent. A host box made from local marble sits on the altar.
There are five smaller alters down the sides of each of the side aisles. Some are fairly simple, others are gilt Baroque. In the south aisle is a glass coffin with the body of Christ, used in the Good Friday celebrations. The writing on the wall above translates as “Why look among the dead. He is not here, he is risen.”
I visited here as part of a “‘Flavours of Spain'”:http://www.solosholidays.co.uk/spain/discovery-tours/flavours-of-spain holiday arranged with “Solos Holidays.”:http://www.silvertraveladvisor.com/review/travel-service/168048-review-solos-holidays
My detailed trip report with all my pictures is
“here.”:http://wasleys.org.uk/eleanor/otherholidays/spain/index.html
