Sights in León
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Catedral
León’s 13th-century cathedral, with its soaring towers, flying buttresses and truly breathtaking interior, is the city’s spiritual heart. Whether spotlit by night or bathed in the glorious northern sunshine, the cathedral, arguably Spain’s premier Gothic masterpiece, exudes a glorious, almost luminous quality.
The extraordinary facade has a radiant rose window, three richly sculpted doorways and two muscular towers. After going through the main entrance, lorded over by the scene of the Last Supper, an extraordinary gallery of vidrieras (stained-glass windows) awaits. French in inspiration and mostly executed from the 13th to the 16th centuries, the windows evoke an…
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Convento de San Marcos & Museo de León
More than 100m long and blessed with a glorious façade, the Convento de San Marcos has more the appearance of a palace than the pilgrim's hospital it was from 1173. The Plateresque exterior, sectioned off by slender columns and decorated with delicate medallions and friezes, dates to 1513, by which time the edifice had become a monastery of the Knights of Santiago.
Much of the former convent is now the supremely elegant parador, Hostal de San Marcos. Although you need to stay here to appreciate its full splendour, the former chapterhouse, with its splendid artesonado, and the exquisite cloister are both open to the public. The cloister is technically part of the Museo de…
reviewed
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Museo de Arte Contemporáneo
León’s showpiece Museo de Arte Contemporáneo belongs to the new wave of innovative Spanish architecture. A pleasing square-and-rhombus edifice of colourful glass and steel, the museum won the Spanish architecture prize a few years back. It has been acclaimed for the 37 shades of coloured glass that adorn the facade; they were gleaned from the pixelisation of a fragment of one of the stained-glass windows in León’s cathedral.
Although the museum has a growing permanent collection, it mostly houses temporary displays of cutting-edge Spanish and international photography, video installations and other similar forms.
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Panteón Real
Attached to the Real Basílica de San Isidoro, Panteón Real houses the remaining sarcophagi, which rest with quiet dignity beneath a canopy of some of the finest Romanesque frescoes in Spain. Motif after colourful motif drenches the vaults and arches of this extraordinary hall, held aloft by marble columns with intricately carved capitals. Biblical scenes dominate and include the Annunciation, King Herod’s slaughter of the innocents, the Last Supper and a striking representation of Christ Pantocrator. The agricultural calendar on one of the arches is equally superb.
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Cripta de Puerta Obispo
Beneath the footpath below the southern wall of the cathedral is the Cripta de Puerta Obispo, the foundations from the northern gate of the Roman camp where León was founded. It’s an ongoing archeological site, so opening times vary. Immediately east of the crypt are the foundations of the Puerta Obispo, one of the main city gates in Roman times.
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Plaza Mayor
At the northeastern end of the old town is the beautiful and time-worn 17th-century Plaza Mayor. Sealed off on three sides by porticoes, this sleepy plaza is home to a bustling fruit and vegetable market on Wednesday and Saturday. On the west side of the square is the superb late-17th-century baroque old town hall.
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Museo de León
Spread over four floors, the exhibits begin with stunning stone artefacts in the basement, and thereafter journey through the Middle Ages up to the 19th century. It’s wonderfully presented and the informative descriptions are in Spanish and English.
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Museo Catedralicio-Diocesano
The Museo Catedralicio-Diocesano, off the cloisters, has an impressive collection encompassing works by Juní and Gaspar Becerra alongside a precious assemblage of early-Romanesque carved statues of the Virgin Mary.
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Plaza de Santa María del Camino
The Plaza de Santa María del Camino (also known as Plaza del Grano) feels like a cobblestone Castilian village square and is overlooked by the Romanesque Iglesia de Santa María del Mercado.
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Casa de Botines
Antoni Gaudí's contribution to León's skyline is the castle-like neo-Gothic Casa de Botines (1893); the zany architect of Barcelona fame seems to have been subdued by more sober León.
reviewed
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Claustro
The peaceful, light-filled claustro, with its 15th-century frescoes, is a perfect complement to the main sanctuary and an essential part of the cathedral experience.
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Plaza de Santo Domingo
On the fringes of León's old town (also known as the Barrio Gótico), Plaza de Santo Domingo is home to the Ayuntamiento which occupies a charming Renaissance-era palace.
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Palacio de los Guzmanes
The Renaissance theme continues in the form of the splendid Palacio de los Guzmanes (1560); the façade and patio stand out.
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