6 sights in Zaragoza

You can visit the 6 most important sights in Zaragoza with one ticket. Let’s go: We explored 2 cathedrals, 3 museums and an observation tower.

Tickets for the sights can be purchased at the cathedral “La SEO”, for example. It is important to note that if you want to visit the observation tower, you must book a time slot when you buy your ticket. All other places can be visited at any time during opening hours. We were told that the ticket is valid for 2 days.

All 6 sights are so close to each other that you can explore them at your leisure with a short walk.

Catedral del Salvador – “La SEO”

One of the two cathedrals in Zaragoza and one of the most famous sights in Zaragoza is called “La SEO” by the locals. Unfortunately, it is forbidden to take photographs in the church (if you are a tourist). I am very happy to abide by this ban, as it is a place of faith and contemplation and many believers use their visit for prayer.

The cathedral was built in the 12th century in the Romanesque style. The Roman forum of Caesaraugusta and the Great Mosque of Saraqusta had previously stood on the site. Today, the minaret forms part of the tower.

The church has been remodeled over the course of time. For example, it was given a baroque spire in 1704 and new sculptures were added to the tower around 80 years later.

The nave is impressive. It consists of five naves covered by a ribbed vault. In the middle is the choir with dark wooden choir stalls. The rest is dominated by a combination of marble, bronze, polychrome and gilded wood and plaster. I like it.

The Cathedral del Salvador is on the UNESCO World Heritage List as part of the “Mudejar Art in Aragon”.

Address:

Plaza de la Seo, 4
50001 Zaragoza

Museo de Tapices in the SEO

A door in the church leads to the old chapter houses, where the tapestry museum, which is also included in the ticket price, is located.

Tapestries are a subject I don’t really know much about, so I climbed the stairs to the rooms with few expectations.

More than 20 tapestries from the collection are on display in the rooms. The collection dates back to the 15th century. At that time, the nobility were already adorning their homes with decorative tapestries. The archbishops did not want to follow suit and also began to decorate their houses and chapels.

In 1938, it was decided to display the tapestries in a permanent exhibition in the church rooms.

Today, you can stroll past the works of art in three rooms. The carpets all have names, such as “The Last Judgement” and “The Deadly Sins”. Some belong to smaller series that tell entire stories. The depictions on the carpets are rich in detail and for the most part excellently preserved. I admire the artists who created these images. Whether knotted or woven, it is outstanding and above all delicate work.

ROSARIO DE CRISTAL- The lantern museum and the crystal rosary

We didn’t actually want to visit the museum, even though the pictures on the internet looked quite interesting. But now we had the entrance ticket for the 6 sights in Zaragoza in our hands and had stepped out of the neighboring Roman Theater. So it was a good idea to take a quick look at the Rosario de Cristal.

Fortunately, we made this decision. I was completely fascinated by what awaited us there.

What is this museum about?

Every year on the evening of October 13, the procession of the crystal rosary takes place as part of the Fiestas del Pilar. This is one of the most important and solemn events of the festival.

The Brotherhood of the Holy Rosary of Our Lady of the Pillar was founded in 1889. From that time onwards, the faithful began to carry lanterns during the rosary procession. Each lantern symbolized a part of the rosary prayer: the mysteries, the Our Father, the Hail Mary, the Glorias and the Litany. It wasn’t long before the procession also included lead glass floats. These could be admired in alternation with the lanterns and gave the event a very special glow.

This procession still takes place in Zaragoza today and around half a million people take part in the event every year.

You can admire the lanterns and beautiful floats in the museum.

View of the lantern museum

The lantern museum is located in a very unusual room. A church nave has actually been converted into a museum. Apart from the pews, which have been removed to make room, the interior is still furnished like a church. Somewhat hidden among the exhibits, you can discover some interesting details.

The tour is structured a little like the floats move during the procession. It starts with lanterns and smaller lead-glass floats and I can admire the large, spectacular floats at the end.

To be honest, I’ve never seen anything like it. For example, a huge ship has been recreated from lead glass. It is illuminated a little from below, it glitters and sparkles. It’s not just the craftsmanship that impresses me, it simply looks magical and I wonder how it will appear during the procession. Certainly beautiful!

The Basilica of El Pilar can also be seen as a lead glass model. What an attention to detail, showing me some of the elements I have just seen on my tour of the church.

There is so much to discover in the museum that I hardly notice the time passing. It was definitely worth going there!

Address:

Pl. de San Pedro Nolasco, s/n, Casco Antiguo,
50001 Zaragoza, Spanien

Basílica del Pilar

The full name of El Pilar Basilica is: Catedral-basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Zaragoza / “Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady on the Pillar of Zaragoza”. Of course, nobody says that about one of the most important sights in Zaragoza. The church is popularly known as El Pilar.

One thing should be noted in advance. Photography is not allowed here! What a shame, it is such a beautiful church.

Although the basilica is listed on the advertising flyer and signs for the general admission ticket, admission is free! You only need a ticket for the Museo Pilarista, which is inside the church.

There are 2 large entrances that lead into the Roman Catholic church. If you are standing in front of the building, the right-hand entrance is the visitor entrance. The left-hand entrance is not always open. It leads to the area where church services are held. Even in the church, these areas are separated by bars.

History of the church

According to tradition, the Virgin Mary appeared to the Apostle James the Elder on a pilar (pillar/pillar) on January 2, 40 AD. The miraculous image of “Our Lady on the Pillar” is located there today.

Numerous churches have been built around this pillar over the years. In the beginning, there was only a small chapel there to keep the pillar. After the Reconquista, a Romanesque church was built. This was damaged in a fire in 1434 and then rebuilt in the Gothic style with the Mudejar elements typical of this region. Numerous alterations and extensions finally resulted in the current baroque building.

View into the church

A truly impressive building measuring around 130 meters long and 67 meters wide with four corner towers awaits the visitor. The nave is characterized by three domes. The two side aisles each have 4 domes. The view upwards is a must in this church. In one of the vaults there is a fresco painted by Franciso de Goya. “The Adoration of the Name of God” was his first commissioned work in Zaragoza. A few years later, he created another fresco in the northern aisle entitled “Regina Martyrum”.

The Santa Capilla in the eastern part of the church is well worth seeing. The area looks like a small church within the church. The pillar that draws many believers into the church is located on the right-hand side. I particularly like the choir stalls. They were made from oak in 1544-1548. There are 124 seats in total. The top row is carved with scenes from the Old and New Testaments.

El Museo Pilarista

An inconspicuous door in the El Pilar Basilica leads to a small museum, which is also one of the most important sights in Zaragoza. The combined admission ticket is required here.

The museum consists of just one room and displays part of the church treasury. The gifts made to the church by kings, nobles, journalists, bullfighters, brotherhoods, etc. are displayed in glass cases.

It is a colorful, glittering mixture of different objects, such as chalices, cloaks, boxes…. The two outstanding pieces in the ensemble are the Oliphant by Gaston de Bearn and the Book of Hours of St. Elisabeth. The Oliphant is a carved ivory war horn decorated with real and fantastic animals such as eagles, peacocks, lions and basilisks. The Book of Hours of St. Isabel of Portugal is a very small book from the 16th century, bound in gilded and embossed silver.

The small museum is definitely one of the sights in Zaragoza that should not be missed. The exhibits on display here are of great cultural interest and certainly very valuable.

Torre de San Francisco de Borja

Our last stop of the day was the church tower of San Francisco de Borja, one of the towers of the Basilica El Pilar. However, there was no entrance to the church and when we asked, we were told that the entrance was at the back of the building. So we had to walk around the church and look for the entrance there.

A ticket is required for the ascent. As only groups of a maximum of 20 people are granted access at any one time, timeslots are allocated. We were there far too early, but were lucky that the next slot was not fully booked. So we were able to get into the elevator.

Before the elevator departed, we were told that the visit would only take 15 minutes. Not quite what we had hoped for. However, it turned out that hardly anyone followed this instruction.

The elevator goes up 62 meters. We arrived at a platform within 20 seconds. From there, we climbed up two flights of stairs to a height of 80 meters.

The visit is really worthwhile. I found the view over the River Ebro with the domes of the basilica in the foreground particularly beautiful. The view in the “direction of the city” is also very worthwhile. If we go up there again, I would like to experience the sunset over Zaragoza from there. When the water glistens and the sky changes color, it must be a dreamlike sight.

Visitor information for the sights in Zaragoza