Cultural, artistic and historical treasure - Church of San Felipe Neri 📷 Malaga - Spain

Some historical and artistic treasures are hidden in hidden streets, in labyrinths that you have to walk through to find them, and I am glad to have walked through these places.

I had passed by the place several times, a place that belongs to the northernmost part of the city centre district of Malaga, where it is full of old and historical buildings, which keep a lot of excellent architecture, culture, stories and above all exquisite art.

I could see the cupolas from afar, the beautiful towers and the big wooden door in front of the church. But the streets are so narrow and there is so little space that I always thought it would be difficult to take pictures of the whole facade. Until I decided to take a look inside and once again I was surprised by this city full of history and art. The church is located between Parra, Gaona and Cabello streets with its main entrance on Parra street, in front of the Museum of Glass and Crystal.

Its exterior façade is beautiful and I decided to do some research on this beautiful baroque style architecture. It belongs to the XVIII century and took decades to be built due to lack of budget, for that reason the construction was started and suspended several times.

It all started in 1720 and was finished in 1795, to see it in its current state. It really took a long time, where first the church was a small chapel that underwent several extensions and remodelling plus the acquisition of nearby land. Many religious orders requested to occupy the chapel and it was granted to the order of the Philippians and thus entrusted to St. Philip Neri, which is why the church bears his name. Here you can find more information.

Knowing that it also suffered fires in 1931 and the amount of works of art destroyed and all that was lost, I imagine that time and all that this special place has gone through. In this way, the history that circulates through these narrow streets becomes more important. I always like to take a closer look at events and I have always liked ancient history, that's why I value each of these buildings, always beyond the religious point of view.

When I arrived at the site the day was extremely cloudy, but when the sun came out it illuminated the structure. I took photographs on both occasions and decided on the sunny ones.

The entrance as well as the towers and all the way around are worth admiring, as is the woodwork contained in the inner doors. I can't quite explain what it feels like to be in places like this where so much has happened, but there is a special energy.

Upon entering, my first expression was one of surprise and of not being able to believe what I was seeing. Many churches can look alike on the outside and the inside is always wonderful because each one has its own style, architecture and way of displaying sculptures, paintings, decorations and much more.

I saw too many things, an unusual altar in the distance, coats of arms on the floor, large sculptures and paintings, the figures of one of the thrones that take centre stage during Holy Week, ceilings with elegant and harmonious decorations and tourists taking photographs of all this wonder.

I stood for a moment looking at this altar at the back of the church with the sculptures of Christ and the Virgin Mary, plus the candelabras, the flowers and all the decorations, paying attention to the details. The Virgin's mantle is amazing how it is made, with very beautiful embroidery, plus the colours of the fabric.

Then I paid attention to the coats of arms on the floor of the church. The latest restorations and refurbishments are not too distant in time and this is noticeable throughout the tour.

As I looked in front of me, I was presented with a number of beautifully displayed images on either side, which I went through one by one.

But the one that caught my attention the most was this virgin, older than the previous one I had seen. You could tell by the sculpture itself and by the costume, highlighting the embroidery of gold threads on the black cloth. A marvel really.

As I mentioned the wooden doors are wonderful, because they have a great workmanship and also anything made of wood I love. A great work of art.

I kept looking around and turning my head around admiring so much history and art together.

Arriving at the altar, I found it to be one of the most original I had seen so far as you could walk behind it and admire the paintings surrounding it, great religious paintings and full of colour.

The altar is in the centre and strongly illuminated, I walked around it to see it up close with all its details.

Something that was also beautiful to see were the decorations on the walls and especially the ceilings. I always look up to them because every church has something beautiful to show from paintings to stained glass, lots of lighting and style.

I cannot deny that the interior was much more than I expected from an 18th century church, majestic, elegant, baroque in style and very pleasing to the eye.

Every detail of this church was worth seeing up close, every corner of it was well maintained and the architecture, the style, the beauty was overflowing. I was glad to have visited it and to see so much history throughout the tour. A place much visited by tourists.

Thank you very much for joining me today, I send you my best regards. See you soon.
Amonet.