Fanum by HadassaCross on DeviantArt (original) (raw)

Published: Dec 5, 2011

Description

Catedral San Juan Bautista

This, the spiritual and architectural centerpiece of Old San Juan, as you see it in its present form, was begun in 1540 as a replacement for a thatch-roofed chapel that was blown apart by a hurricane in 1529. Chronically hampered by a lack of funds and a recurring series of military and weather-derived disasters, it slowly evolved into the gracefully vaulted, Gothic-inspired structure you see today. Among the many disasters to hit this cathedral are the following: In 1598 the Earl of Cumberland led the British navy in a looting spree, and in 1615 a hurricane blew away its roof. In 1908 the body of Ponce de León was disinterred from the nearby Iglesia de San José and placed in a marble tomb near the transept, where it remains today.

Image size

2092x2587px 1.72 MB

Shutter Speed

10/70 second

Date Taken

Nov 30, 1999, 12:00:00 AM