The Spires

I ask you now to gaze upwards, and look at the four spires that top the façade. They are dedicated to the Apostles Barnaby, Simon, Judas and Matthew. In 1925, after numerous financial and political struggles, I was able to witness the moment when the workers finished St. Barnaby’s Spire, which is the only one I was to live to see completed. You should have seen the party in the nearby streets to celebrate the event!

When the church is finished, there will be 18 spires. Twelve dedicated to the apostles that will top the facades, and four more above the naves, dedicated to the Evangelists. These in turn will surround the great central dome dedicated to Jesus Christ, which will be 172 metres high and will then become one of the highest points in Barcelona. And, finally, the Spire of the Virgin Mary which, at 125 metres high, will stand over the Apse. It will be an apotheosis, an image summarizing the entire essence of the church: geometry, symbolism, movement, colour, form and structures, adapted to suit their purpose.

They were all designed to be seen from a distance, which is why I tried to keep the construction and decoration as simple as possible. They have pointed, ascending shapes, topped by pinnacles covered with geometric shapes and colours that give the Sagrada Familia its unique beauty and personality. I also wanted Catalonia to be represented on this great stage set, and the four spires over each doorway are inspired by the four stripes of the Catalan flag.

Now look at the shape of the slender belfries. The lower part is made up of twelve vertical stone ribs, whose purpose is to make the spires stable and more wind-resistant, while the horizontal openings mark the rhythm of their ascent, and scatter to the four winds the sound of the 85 tubular bells that will ring out over Barcelona when they spires have been completed.

The pinnacles, which are the brightly coloured structures at the top of the spires, are cubes, pyramids and spheres that refer to the attributes of bishops: the mitre, ring, cross and staff. Although it looks like ceramic, the material that gives the shapes their rich tones is actually Murano glass, which is far more resistant to bad weather, particularly in a place that is so hard to reach for repairs. You will see they have a cavity in the centre. That is where the lamps will be fitted that will project outwards a halo of light.



(c) (R) 2013, MUSMon com S.L.
Text (a) Diego Laforga Marcos (2013)

Pictures
Source: Own work
Author: Carlos Marcos (2013)

Picture: Towers
Source: Wikipedia
Author: Bernard Gagnon (2009)
Licence: Licence: Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled GNU Free Documentation License.

Picture: Pinnacle
Source: Wikipedia
Author: Canaan (2010)
Licence: Licence: Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled GNU Free Documentation License.