Castellon Monuments
The centre of the city is where the majority of historical buildings are located, and the Plaza Mayor, the Fish market Plaza and Plaza Santa Clara -full of life and activity- still evoke a taste of the past.
El Fadrí (The Fadrí Tower)
This 58-metre octagonal bell tower was built following plans by
Damián Méndez during the end of the 1 6th century
and the beginning of the 1 7th century. It is now the symbol of
the city and stands apart from the cathedral (its name in Valencian
means obachelor») next to the noble Abbey house. The two
upper stories contain the bells which mark the hours and announce
events of importance in the city.
La Concatedral de Santa María (The Procathedral
of Saint Mary)
Originally built in the 1 3th century and reconstructed in the
14th after destruction by fire, this church was once one of the
most representative examples of Gothic architecture in the Land
of Valencia. It was practically demolished in 1936, with only
two side doorways and the central portal left standing. Vicente
Traver began reconstruction work in 1940, and work is still being
continued today in the East Wing and the apse. Valuable gold and
silverwork has been conserved, such as various 18th-century processionai
crosses, sculptures from the 17th and 19th centuries (particularly
the Purisima, or Virgin Mary, by José Esteve Bonet) and
oil paintings by Ribalta and Joaquín Oliet.
El Ayuntamiento (The City Hall)
Erected at the beginning of the 1 8th century by the master builders
Gil Torralva and Melchor Serrano, the city hall has a handsome
Tuscanstyle façade rising up over a colonnade. The building
contains sculptures by Viciano and Benlliure, and paintings by
Oliet, Foz, Puig Roda, Porcar, Domènech and Agrasot.
La Plaza de Santa Clara (Saint Claire Square)
Opening to the south of the marketplace, on the site of the erstwhile
Santa Clara Convent, the first hospital in the city, this Plaza
contains a modern sculpture by Llorens Poy referring to the history
of Castellón de la Plana and is surrounding by a modern
arcade. During the week-long Magdalena celebration, the plaza
is also the site of a number of festivities and the New and Used
Book Fair.
La Lonja (The Exchange)
Known popularly as the Llotja del Cànem (Hemp Exchange)
owing to the extensive trade in hempen cloth and rope in the province
in former years, this building was constructed during the first
half of the 1 7th century under the direction of Francisco Galiansa.
The two sides facing Colón and Caballeros streets present
four large arcades on Tuscan pilasters. Near the Plaza Mayor stands
the Casa dels Miquels, a 1 5th-century nobleman's home with large,
sculpted voussoirs above the main doorway. Next to this is the
Casa dels Orfens, an orphanage founded in the 19th century by
Bishop José Climent.
El Teatro Principal (The Main Theatre)
This neo-classical style theatre was built towards the end of
the 19th century and seats one thousand five hundred people. It
contains paintings by Pedro Ferrer and Francisco Pérez
Olmos. In the pedestrian area of the Plaza de la Paz, where the
theatre is located, there is an elegant modernist kiosk where
many locals gather before and after the theatre.
El Casino (The Casino)
Not far from the Plaza de la Paz, the monumental modernist edifice
of the Castellón Casino can be seen. Constructed in 1922
on the foundations of a 17th century building, the Casino is used
for numerous civil events in the city.
Basílica de Santa María de Lledó
At the end of a broad avenue decorated with orange trees, the
Basilica of Santa María de Lledó lies on the northwest
edge of the city, and was named after the virgin who became patron
saint of Castellón de la Plana in 1922. According to written
records, there was a chapel located here in the 14th century commemorating
the discovery of the image of the Virgin by Perot de Granyana
in 1366. The hermitage was extended in the 16th century and the
present-day façade is the result of this reform. It acquired
its present form in the 18th century, and is surrounded by a landscaped
garden. On one side there is a tiled frieze representing the original
hermits. Inside, in addition to the image and a collection of
mantles, there are sculptures from the 1 7th and 1 8th centuries
and valuable oil paintings and silverware.
Casa Abadia (The Abbey)
Built in the 16th century next to the Fadrí Tower, this
building has an extensive library belonging to the Castellón
Society of Culture, one of the oldest bodies in the city.
Iglesia de San Miguel (Church of St. Michael)
This is a small 18th-century church with an attractive baroque
interior used for staging important historic and ethnographic
exhibits.
Convento de Capuchinas (Capuchin Convent) This 18th-century convent
holds a valuable collection of paintings by Zurbarán and
sculptures from the 17th and 18th centuries.
Iglesia del Convento de San Agustín (Church of the
Convent of St. Augustine)
This church has a baroque façade and interior, with dome
frescoes by José Vergara. The chapels are adorned with
paintings by this artist and by Joaquín Oliet.
Castellon guide