Traditionally considered as the first parish church in the town, erected in the shadow and shelter of the castle, its architectural features suggest a chronology of the first half of the 14th century, although Hernández Díaz, Sancho Corbacho and Collantes de Terán cite – in 1939 – a Gothic inscription in which the knight Cristóbal de Mosquera, in the 15th century, is given as the founder of the temple. In the Pastoral Visit of 1706, mentioned above, we are told that “it is well repaired and its altar is moderately composed”. In the middle of the 19th century it was in a ruinous state, as a letter from the parish priest Manuel de Santarén dated 15th June 1853 states that “part of it is in a pool, they jump from the top, they make a fire”. Some years later, the same parish priest asked the Archbishopric’s Secretary of the Archbishopric for 2,000 reales, the amount at which the expert builders of Alanís had valued the restoration of the chapel, as part of it had collapsed”. In 1907, from the letter of the parish priest Antonio Martín de Alba dated 7 March of that year, we know that the chapel had already been repaired.
Architecturally, it is a building with a single nave, rectangular in plan, divided into four sections by means of pointed transversal arches – an architectural model widely used in the medieval architecture of the Sierras of Córdoba, Seville and Huelva – and topped by a curious semicircular apse, more typical of Romanesque than Andalusian Mudejar architecture, all covered by a wooden roof. Of great interest are its doorways, made up of pointed masonry arches with nailheads, and stylistically related to those that give access to the parish church of Nuestra Señora de las Nieves.
As for the works of art housed in this sacred precinct, we know from the aforementioned letter from the parish priest Manuel de Santarén dated 1853, that at that date the sculptures of Saint John the Baptist, Saint John the Evangelist, Saint Anthony the Abbot, Saint Anne and Saint Bridget were placed on material supports, some young people having found a sculpture of Christ Crucified inside a partition wall in 1906. According to the parish priest Antonio Martín de Albapar, more than 2,000 people attended the procession to commemorate the discovery. In 1936 all these sculptures disappeared (11), and in 1939 the aforementioned Hernández Díaz, Sancho Corbacho and Collantes de Terán mention a mural painting with the theme of the Baptism of Christ.
Hermitage of Nuestra Señora de las Angustias: it was erected in memory of the victory obtained against the “Moors”, 200 metres from the town, in the so-called valley of Matamoros. Its construction consists of three sections and an entrance. The first section was built in the 18th century, and there is a tombstone inscribed with the date 1656. Inside, the image of Our Lady of Sorrows, patron saint of the town, is kept and venerated. The original image was destroyed during the Civil War and was later replaced by the current one, the work of the sculptor Castillo Lastrucci. Middle Gothic. Rebuilt in the 18th century.
For more information you can visit the website of the Hermandad de Ntra. Sra. de las Angustias (Brotherhood of Our Lady of Sorrows), at https://angustiasdealanis.com/
Ermita de Jesús Nazareno (Jesus Nazareno Chapel): a building belonging to the old hospital de la Caridad, now disappeared, has a Baroque style altarpiece inside. In this chapel, of simple and austere beauty, and which invites the locals and visitors to meditation and devout prayer, is where the image of Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno is venerated, the patron saint of one of the most popular penitential brotherhoods in the town. 16TH CENTURY. Visits from 10:00 to 22:00.
Church of Nuestra Señora de las Nieves: Traditional construction with three naves, dating from 1356. Its valuable Baroque altarpiece, which adorns the entire front of the main altar, and which dates from the 16th century, is worthy of note. Inside there is a 16th century chapel, decorated with Mudejar tiles. Due to an earthquake, it underwent major repairs in the mid-18th century. Important Gothic altarpiece. Visits during church hours.
Hermitage of San Miguel de la Breña: located a few kilometres from the town, on the road leading to Malcocinado, and on a privately owned estate, it is the last remaining vestige of the old Basilica Monastery that once existed. The hermitage, which has been left as a storehouse for the current farmhouse, consists of a single nave divided into two sections, one with a barrel vault and the other with a dome.
Popular architecture
Fountain of Santa María: located in the town centre, built in the time of Carlos V. It has been the great supplier of water for centuries, and has been loved by the locals throughout the ages. It is located in Calle Angustia, in a small area that was once called Plaza de Santa María. Next to a spring of water, from which the nearby town has historically drawn its water, a front wall was erected in honour of the Virgen de las Angustias, and there is a Sevillian ceramic panel with the image, dated 1767.
Fuente de Pilitas: along the road leading to the cemetery, on the left-hand side, is the Fuente de las Pilitas, of great local ethnographic value and the source of inspiration for the legend-myth of the “Encanto de las Pilitas” (Charm of the Pilitas). It is an old Arab fountain in brick, accompanied by its corresponding pool of the same origin and style, which even today still fulfils its primary function of irrigating the nearby vegetable gardens and watering livestock.
May Crosses: Historically, the May Crosses represent a link between the locals and their neighbourhood of origin, manifesting these feelings with the celebration of these festivities, when each neighbourhood is grouped around their procession floats, producing a strong rivalry between them. Today these popular manifestations have completely disappeared, but their symbolic monuments in wrought iron and carved stone still remain in the Triana neighbourhood and in Nueva and Corredera streets.
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