Catedral de Valencia
Catedral de Valencia · Valencia
Por Spain ·
The Gothic-style Cathedral is Valencia’s grandest church, and its Miguelete Tower is one of the city’s landmarks.
The Cathedral was built on the site of an ancient mosque, and construction began in the 13th century, although it underwent numerous alterations right up until the 17th century. It combines several architectural styles, with Gothic clearly predominating.
One of the jewels of the cathedral’s interior is the Chapel of the Holy Chalice, the former chapter house, with its beautiful star-shaped vault, a depiction of heaven featuring the 12 apostles and the Coronation of the Virgin.
Among all its artefacts, the relic of the Holy Chalice stands out – a vessel dating from the 1st century AD which, according to tradition, was used by Jesus to institute the Eucharist. Meanwhile, the exterior of the cathedral is characterised by the Puerta del Palau, the oldest doorway of the cathedral, in the Romanesque style with Mudejar elements, and the Puerta de los Apóstoles (14th century).
It is precisely here that the Water Tribunal sits every Thursday at 12 noon.
This institution was established by King James I in the Middle Ages; it comprises eight farmers elected every two years by the irrigators of the Valencia agricultural plain, and its purpose is to administer justice in matters relating to irrigation and the distribution of water from the River Turia, through an oral proceedings conducted in the Valencian language, the rulings of which are final and cannot be appealed.
The Water Tribunal remains to this day a model institution. UNESCO has declared it an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
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