Convent of Las Descalzas Reales
Convent of las Descalzas Reales | |
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Native name Spanish: Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales | |
Location | Madrid, Spain |
Coordinates | 40°25′06″N 3°42′22″W / 40.418267°N 3.706192°W |
Official name | Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales |
Type | Non-movable |
Criteria | Monument |
Designated | 1994 |
Reference no. | RI-51-0008691 |
The Convent of Las Descalzas Reales (Spanish: Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales) is a royal monastery situated in Madrid, Spain, administered by the Patrimonio Nacional.
History
The Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales, literally the "Monastery of the Royal Discalced", resides in the former palace of
The demographics of the convent slowly changed over time, and by the 20th century, all of the sisters were in poverty. The convent maintained the riches of its past, but it was forbidden to auction any of the items off or spend any of the money it received from the dowries. The state intervened when it saw that the sisters were poor, and the pope granted a special dispensation to open the convent as a museum in 1960.[2]
Alfonso, Duke of Anjou and Cádiz (died 1989) is buried in the Chapel of Saint John the Baptist next to his elder son Francisco de Asís (died 1984). Alfonso's younger brother Gonzalo (died 2000) is buried in the Chapel of Saint Sebastian.[3]
Museum
While in the past, the treasures of the monastery were not visible, today the monastery houses only a few nuns, and the site is a well-visited national monument. The noblewomen's dowries were often invested into relics and their bejeweled exhibition pieces. Among the many relics on display are putatively pieces from
The museum collection also includes such rarities as portraits of royal children of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from the late 16th century,[5] referring to Polish–Spanish relations that inspired Calderón's La vida es sueño.[6] Portraits of the son and daughter of King Sigismund of Poland were painted by Martin Kober in 1596 and were sent as a gift to King Philip III of Spain.[5]
The Church
The original architect of the church was
References
- ^ "Convent of Las Descalzas Reales". museums.eu. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
- ^ "Convent of Las Descalzas Reales". ringlingdocents.org. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
- ^ a b Vega, Paulina Junquera de (1962). The monastery convent of the Descalzas Reales: Guide-book for sightseers;. Editorial Patrimonio Nacional.
- ^ a b TURESPAÑA (2007-04-23). "Convent of Las Descalzas Reales in Madrid | spain.info USA". Spain.info. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
- ^ a b Karolina Lipczyńska-Wawer. "Wystawa z kolekcji Patrimonio Nacional". www.poland-art.com. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 9 July 2014.
- ^ Michael Cohen. "Segismundo, Sigismundo, and the Power in Europe" (PDF). poderypiedad.weebly.com. Retrieved 9 July 2014.
- ^ "Convent of the "Descalzas Reales"". neoris05.aprosi.net. Retrieved 2018-06-08.