Church of Our Lady of Merced, San Jose, Costa Ricaarchitecture, arts, religious, Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de La Merced

Church of Our Lady of Merced

Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de La Merced

architecture

arts

religious

4.50
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Address: Calle 10, San José

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zzMarta

04-12-2018

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Ranked #46 of 65 in Costa Rica

Ranked #3 of 3 in San Jose

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zzMarta

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04-16-2018

This Church is an example of Neo-Gothic architecture. Its construction began in June of 1894, by Monsignor Bernardo Augusto Thiel bishop of Costa Rica. It was built by the engineer Lesmes Jiménez Bonnefil and the architect Jaime Carranza . It stands out especially for a single central tower that shows a strong influence of German Gothic architecture . This church is, since June 11, 1996, historical-architectural heritage of Costa Rica and one of the most recognizable buildings in the city of San José. The Church of La Merced replaces another church that arose in 1816 on the initiative of a group of residents of the town of San José who wanted to erect an oratory dedicated to the Virgin of Mercedes , patron saint of the city of Barcelona . The neighbors collected the money from their own pockets and built a church of adobes and tiles in a place near the old San José tobacco factory. In 1822, an earthquake damaged facade of the Parish of San José, so the Church of La Merced became the place chosen to attend religious services. In 1824, the Church was the place where the members of the First Constituent Congress of the Free State of Costa Rica were sworn in. In 1871, Monsignor Anselmo Llorente y Lafuente promoted its restoration after declaring it temporarily Cathedral of San José. The reconstruction was completed in 1874. In 1888, it was destroyed by an earthquake. For its reconstruction, the Catholic Church and the Costa Rican government exchanged land, so La Merced would be rebuilt on the land occupied by the Municipal Theater and where the first church was built the Central Bank. This is the reason why the current Church of La Merced is not within the Merced district, whose name comes from the first church. The construction of the first temple began in 1894, thanks to a donation from the Costa Rican government. The architectural design, of neo-Gothic style , was decided by the builders, the engineer Lesmes Jiménez Bonnefil and the architect Jaime Carranza , and by Monsignor Thiel, as a response to the neo-classical , baroque and Mediterranean styles that predominated in the buildings built by the liberals , giving in this way a turn towards the more Nordic and medieval style in the architecture of the churches. The construction finished around 1907 with the placement of the tower clock. The Church was restored in 2002. In 2016 it was reported in the press that the temple had fallen back into disrepair. The architecture of the church is of neo-Gothic type, standing out the central tower, of frank German Gothic influence. The building was constructed in brick, on a stone plinth. The temple has three interior naves under a continuous warhead . The central ship is the highest, with fifteen meters of height, while the lateral ships reach nine meters. The armor and roof cover are made of iron. It has a natural-tone mahogany ceiling, which is supported by wooden columns, which feature colorful paintings by the Italian Adriano Arié, dating from 1940. The base of the internal walls has a marble veneer, with floor mosaics The church has several elements such as rose windows , gardens and stained glass , as well as one covered in Venetian stucco at the main entrance. During the last restoration, the original colors of the temple and a series of original paintings on the internal walls that were covered in a remodeling in 1950 were rescued. There are several works of art inside the Church, standing out three stained glass windows that represent the appearance of the Virgin of Mercedes. The most cherished and valuable work is an image of Christ Agonizing, by the artist Manuel María Zúñiga , who portrayed himself naked on a cross and then made the sculpture, whereby the anatomy and the wounds of the Christ are quite realistic. Partially translated from Wikipedia en español.

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This Church is an example of Neo-Gothic architecture. Its construction began in June of 1894, by Monsignor Bernardo Augusto Thiel bishop of Costa Rica. It was built by the engineer Lesmes Jiménez Bonnefil and the architect Jaime Carranza . It stands out especially for a single central tower that shows a strong influence of German Gothic architecture . This church is, since June 11, 1996, historical-architectural heritage of Costa Rica and one of the most recognizable buildings in the city of San José.
The Church of La Merced replaces another church that arose in 1816 on the initiative of a group of residents of the town of San José who wanted to erect an oratory dedicated to the Virgin of Mercedes , patron saint of the city of Barcelona . The neighbors collected the money from their own pockets and built a church of adobes and tiles in a place near the old San José tobacco factory.
In 1822, an earthquake damaged facade of the Parish of San José, so the Church of La Merced became the place chosen to attend religious services. In 1824, the Church was the place where the members of the First Constituent Congress of the Free State of Costa Rica were sworn in. In 1871, Monsignor Anselmo Llorente y Lafuente promoted its restoration after declaring it temporarily Cathedral of San José. The reconstruction was completed in 1874.
In 1888, it was destroyed by an earthquake. For its reconstruction, the Catholic Church and the Costa Rican government exchanged land, so La Merced would be rebuilt on the land occupied by the Municipal Theater and where the first church was built the Central Bank. This is the reason why the current Church of La Merced is not within the Merced district, whose name comes from the first church.
The construction of the first temple began in 1894, thanks to a donation from the Costa Rican government. The architectural design, of neo-Gothic style , was decided by the builders, the engineer Lesmes Jiménez Bonnefil and the architect Jaime Carranza , and by Monsignor Thiel, as a response to the neo-classical , baroque and Mediterranean styles that predominated in the buildings built by the liberals , giving in this way a turn towards the more Nordic and medieval style in the architecture of the churches. The construction finished around 1907 with the placement of the tower clock.
The Church was restored in 2002. In 2016 it was reported in the press that the temple had fallen back into disrepair. 
The architecture of the church is of neo-Gothic type, standing out the central tower, of frank German Gothic influence. The building was constructed in brick, on a stone plinth. The temple has three interior naves under a continuous warhead . The central ship is the highest, with fifteen meters of height, while the lateral ships reach nine meters.
The armor and roof cover are made of iron. It has a natural-tone mahogany ceiling, which is supported by wooden columns, which feature colorful paintings by the Italian Adriano Arié, dating from 1940. The base of the internal walls has a marble veneer, with floor mosaics The church has several elements such as rose windows , gardens and stained glass , as well as one covered in Venetian stucco at the main entrance. During the last restoration, the original colors of the temple and a series of original paintings on the internal walls that were covered in a remodeling in 1950 were rescued.
There are several works of art inside the Church, standing out three stained glass windows that represent the appearance of the Virgin of Mercedes. The most cherished and valuable work is an image of Christ Agonizing, by the artist Manuel María Zúñiga , who portrayed himself naked on a cross and then made the sculpture, whereby the anatomy and the wounds of the Christ are quite realistic. Partially translated from Wikipedia en español.