Alicante Monuments
The Town Hall
Building is a superb example of Baroque civil architecture. It
was laid out at the end of the 17th century and construction began
in 1701, lasting throughout the greater part of the 18th century.
The magnificent 50-metre long façade is flanked by two
original twin towers.
At the foot of the main staircase is the cota cero, a point of
reference for measuring the height over sea level of any point
in Spain. Of particular interest are the Blue Room with its side
chapel and the Salón de Plenos (the Plenary Room), located
on the first floor of the building.
Santa Barbara Castle
Located on the summit of Mount Benacantil, which is almost entirely
surrounded by the sea, the Castle can boast of fantastic panoramic
views. Spread over a large area, its three main buildings date
from the 14th, 16th and 18th centuries, although there are foundations
that date back to the 11th-12th centuries. Iberian, Roman and
Arab remains have been found here.
From among its many features, of particular note are the keep
(Torre de Homenaje), the Engineers' Park and the Room of Philip
II. The castle is home to several permanent exhibitions. It can
be reached via an elevator set into the rockface opposite Postiguet
Beach or by a road branching off from Calle Vázquez de
Mella and running up through the pine trees on the northern slope
of the mountain. The most prominent rock - an emblem of the city
- is called 'the Moor's face' given its similarity to a human
face.
Santa Faz Monastery
This monastery is located at a distance of 5 km from the town
centre in the direction of Valencia. It is constructed in a pure
Baroque style and in the exact spot where a miracle was attributed
to the relic of a fold of the cloth with which Veronica wiped
the bleeding face of Jesus and which was brought to Alicante on
a pilgrimage in 1489.
San Nicolas de Bari Co-Cathedral
Built over the remains of a mosque and with a sombre exterior,
the style is Herrero-Renaissance. Construction of the Co-Cathedral
took the greater part of the 17th century. The cloister, however,
dates from the 15th century, with the later addition of the Baroque
doorways, a style that is again reproduced in great splendour
in the Communion Chapel dating from the 18th century. The organ
also dates from that century. The lower and upper parts of the
Presbytery contain the altars of the two patron saints of Alicante,
St. Nicholas de Bari and the Virgen del Remedio.
Santa Maria Church
Gothic in style and dating from the 14th to the 16th century,
the Santa María Church was built over the remains of a
mosque. The high altar in Rococo gold leaf and the Baroque doorway,
both dating from the 18th century, represent two splendid examples
of sculpture. Dating from the same period is the grillework. The
priceless baptismal font, made of white Carrara marble, is of
the Michelangelo school and was carved in the second half of the
16th century. The organ dates from the 17th century.
The church possesses an important document collection, the oldest
piece being an incunabulum dating from the 13th century.
Main Theatre
A neo-classical building, the town theatre was inaugurated in
1847 and recently restored. Its interior contains beautiful decorative
items.
Tossal de Manises Iberian Settlement
The remains of the Ibero-Roman fortified town of Lucentum are
to be found in Tossal de Manises. Lucentum, the origins of present
day Alicante, dates as far back as the 3rd-4th centuries BC and
continued to be inhabited until the end of the 3rd century AD.
Located on a knoll and facing away from Albufereta Beach, it stretches
over an area of some 30,000m2. To date, only 6,500m2 have been
excavated, a task first undertaken by the Count of Lumiares in
the 18th century. The walled area with its streets, domus, shops,
hot springs, etc, can easily be visited on foot. Declared a Historic-Artistic
Monument in 1961. Also guided tours on request.
Gravina Palace
This mansion house, dating from the 18th century and belonging
to the family of the Count of Lumiares, houses the Provincial
Archives. It has recently become home to the Provincial Fine Arts
Gallery (MUBAG), which exhibits the Government Delegation (Diputación)
art collection, consisting mainly of paintings dating from the
19th and 20th centuries.
The House of the Provincial Delegation
A neo-classical mansion house inaugurated in 1931, contains an
important gallery of art works exhibited in several of its rooms.
Behind the building is the Jardín de las Celebridades Alicantinas
with sculpted and tiled monuments commemorating famous local personalities.
House of Witches
This Valencian Government building is a singular example of Modernist
architecture dating from the end of the 19th century.
Alicante guide