Catedral de la Santa Cruz y Santa Eulalia in Barcelona

The Cathedral de la Santa Creu, also known as the Cathedral or simply the Seu, is one of the most beautiful and impressive churches in the city, an excellent example of the Mediterranean Gothic architecture. The construction of the building began in the final decades of the 13th Century, during the reign of King Jaume II. The cathedral was preceded by a number of different constructions, including a Roman temple, a mosque, and a few early Christian churches.

The basilica is dedicated to the St Cross and St Eulalia, killed by the Romans for her Catholic faith. The building of the church is really a complex comprising a temple and a cloister. The impressive Neo-Gothic façade, profusely decorated with images of angels and saints features five main doors. The main entrance is adorned with beautiful sculptures of angels, prophets and ancient kings. The Vestibule of San Ivo is considered to be the oldest door, crafted out of marble and stone brought from Montjuic. The Door of the Mercy features a magnificent wood relief, representing the Mercy surrounded by symbols of the Passion, produced by Michael Lochner. The Door of St Eulalia is a conopial arc with a wonderful sculpture of its patron saint, and the Door of St Lucy is distinguished by five semicircular archivolts, sustained by three back-to-back quadrangular pillars and two very fine circular columns. One of the highlights of the basilica is the bell tower, dating from the 13th Century, and the Cappella de Sant Benet/i behind the altar, built in the 15th Century by Bernat Matorell.