Cathedral

Lonely Planet review

After Seville fell to the Christians in 1248 its main mosque was used as a church until 1401 when, in view of its decaying state, the church authorities decided to knock it down and start again. 'Let us create such a building that future generations will take us for lunatics', they reputedly agreed.

They certainly got themselves a big and magnificent church. Seville's Cathedral is one of the largest in the world: the main building is 126m long and 83m wide. It was completed by 1507 and was originally all Gothic, though work done after its central dome collapsed in 1511 was mostly in the Renaissance style. The mosque's beautiful minaret, La Giralda, still stands on its eastern side, but the cathedral's bulky exterior gives few other hints of the treasures within.