Iglesia de la Magdalena

The Church of La Magdalena is certainly the oldest church in the city of Jaén, at least of the existing ones, since it was built using an earlier mosque commissioned by Abderramán II (825). The courtyard and minaret date from this period.

The church, built in the Gothic style, has four naves, one wider than the others, separated by irregular, non-aligned pillars. From pillar to pillar, pointed arches are turned, and the roof is covered by lizard-shaped ribbed vaults, reminiscent of the legend of the raudal, which rest on corbels above the capitals.

Among the works of interest are the polychrome carvings of the Calvary, attributed to Jacobo Florentino or Jerónimo Quijano; that of the Christ of Clemency, by Salvador de Cuéllar, made in 1593, and that of The Kneeling Magdalene, by Mateo Medina, catalogued in 1572. Remains of Christian painting remain, in an irregular state of conservation. Finally, the two-leaf doorway of the main doorway, commissioned by Bishop Diego Tavera in 1555, should not be missed, still magnificent despite the passage of time.

It is advisable to visit the Raudal de la Magdalena, used since Roman times and the scene of the legend of the ‘Lagarto de Jaén’ (Jaén Lizard).