Santo Tomé Church

Toledo, Spain

The Iglesia de Santo Tomé is a church located in the historical center of the Toledo, and was founded after the reconquest of this city by King Alfonso VI of León. It appears quoted in the 12th century, as constructed on the site of an old mosque of the 11th century. This mosque, together with other mosques in the city, were used as Christian churches without major changes, since in the taking of the city there was no destruction of buildings.

However, at the beginning of the 14th century, being in a ruinous state was totally rebuilt in charge of Gonzalo Ruiz de Toledo, Lord of Orgaz and the old minaret of the mosque was transformed into a bell tower in Mudéjar style. Its fame is mainly due to the fact that it contains the painting The Burial of the Count of Orgaz by El Greco, which can be seen by accessing the back of church.

Santo Tomé has two baroque reredos, one plateresque and a baptismal font of the 16th century. It highlights an image of the Virgin Mary of 12th century and the reredos with Ionic elements of the greater chapel of the 19th century, that replaced an earlier churrigueresque, in this reredos is in its central part a painting, 'The unbelief of St. Thomas', by the painter Vicente López Portaña.

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Details

Founded: 14th century
Category: Religious sites in Spain

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

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4.4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Vincent Watson (2 years ago)
El Greco's painting was nice. Cheap but quick tour.
Dan Maarek (2 years ago)
Only for the El Greco painting, of course. And if you have the museum pass, then it's a must
Vincent Oliver (2 years ago)
For me, the attraction was to see the el Greco painting - much larger (est. 3 X 5m?) and more detailed than expected. It can be very crowded in the relatively small room and most tours only come for the painting. The chapel, while beautiful, is similar in design, details and icons to many others in Spain.
Susanna SS (2 years ago)
This church was built in the 12th century on the site of an old mosque after the reconquest of the city of Toledo. It is famous mainly because it houses the painting The Burial of the Count of Orgaz by El Greco
Julia SH (3 years ago)
Beautiful Greco painting that’s humungous! It’s free entry with the €12 wrist band so it’s definitely worth buying it as you can visit the 7 biggest sights. This place only has the painting so it can get a bit full around lunch time so going early in the morning helps a lot to avoid tourists and visitors
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