Considered one of the most notable examples of Catalan Gothic architecture, Santa Maria del Mar is one of Barcelona's most beautiful churches. Built from 1329 to 1383, Santa Maria del Mar's striking exterior features can be seen from far away distances, and inside, it's excellent acoustic conditions make it one of Barcelona's most sought after spaces for classical and Oriental Music. It is not uncommon for Santa Maria del Mar to host jazz concerts as well. Santa Maria del Mar is located on the Carrer Montcada end of Passeig del Born.

Santa Maria del Mar is an imposing church in the Ribera district of Barcelona, Spain, built between 1329 and 1383 at the height of Catalonia's maritime and mercantile preeminence. It is an outstanding example of Catalan Gothic, with a purity and unity of style that are very unusual in large medieval buildings.

The building place of the church of Santa Maria del Mar has been a particular importance since the early Christian period. Here, the apostle James preached. Therefore, a small chapel was built. In 304, the corpse of the Holy Eulalia was buried. The bones were hidden in the 8th Century by the Arabs and found 15 years later. In 1339, they were then transferred into the cathedral.

The first mention of a church of Santa Maria by the sea dates from 998. The construction of the present building was promoted by the canon Bernat Llull, who was appointed Archdean of Santa Maria in 1324. Construction work started on 25 March 1329 when the foundation stone was laid by king Alfonso IV of Aragon, as commemorated by a tablet in Latin and Catalan on the facade that gives onto Fossar de les Moreres. The architects in charge were Berenguer de Montagut (designer of the building) and Ramon Despuig, and during the construction all the guilds of the Ribera quarter were involved.

The walls, the side chapels and the facades were finished by 1350. In 1379, there was a fire that damaged important parts of the works. Finally, on 3 November 1383 the last stone was added and on 15 August the first mass was celebrated.

In 1428, an earthquake caused several casualties and destroyed the rose window in the west end. The new window, in the Flamboyant style, was finished by 1459 and one year later the glass was added. The images and the Baroque altar were destroyed in a fire in 1936. The chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, adjacent to the apse, was added in the 19th century.

From the outside, Santa Maria gives an impression of massive severity that belies the interior. It is hemmed in by the narrow streets of the Ribera, making it difficult to obtain an overall impression, except from the Fossar de les Moreres and the Plaça de Santa Maria, both of them former burial grounds. The latter is dominated by the west end of the church with its rose window. Images of Saint Peter and Saint Paul occupy niches on either side of the west door, and the tympanum shows the Saviour flanked by Our Lady and Saint John. The north-west tower was completed in 1496, but its companion was not finished until 1902. The church is great for sightseeing and taking photos. Don't miss the chance to visit it when you visit Barcelona. You can start your travel across the city from the church right after you book a hotel reservation.

In contrast with the exterior, the interior gives an impression of light and spaciousness. It is of the basilica type, with its three aisles forming a single space with no transepts and no architectural boundary between nave and presbytery. The simple ribbed vault is supported on slender octagonal columns, and abundant daylight streams in through the tall clerestorey windows.

The interior is almost devoid of imagery of the sort to be found in Barcelona's other large Gothic churches, the cathedral and Santa Maria del Pi, after the fire which occurred in 1936 during anticlerical disturbances. Amongst the most notable of the works destroyed at that time was the Baroque retable by Deodat Casanoves and Salvador Gurri. Some interesting stained-glass windows have survived from various periods. The church has a serious claim to have the slenderest stone built columns in the world.

According to the art historian Josep Bracons, the basic unit of measurement used in Santa Maria del Mar was the mediaeval foot of 33 centimetres. Measured in this way, the side chapels are 10 feet deep, the width of the side aisles is double this, while the central aisle is four times as wide, that is, 40 feet. The total width of the church is thus 100 mediaeval feet, which is also equal to the maximum height of the building. In popular culture, the construction of Santa Maria del Mar is the background for the best-selling novel La catedral del mar, by Ildefonso Falcones (2006).

The church is a splendid example of Catalan-Gothic architecture, with octagonal towers with flat tops, large bare surfaces, an exceptionally tall interior, rib vaults and soaring vertical lines. The tall columns were a major influence on Gaudi's design of La Sagrada Familia.

Workers carrying stones on their backs are represented on the main doors of the church, in commemoration of the guild members who personally helped to transport the heavy stone from the quarry to their new church.

The interior was burned out by locals in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War, after the Church sided with Franco against the people. Smoke still blackens parts of the vault, but the resulting lack of furnishings only enhances the architecture's simple beauty.

Over the years, the church has established a bond with the residents of the city and Catalonia. For example, there is a white mulberry tree which was once the church’s cemetery where all the Catalans who died during the siege on Barcelona in 1714 can be found and where the Catalonia’s National Holiday is commemorated.

The secrets of the church include the numerous columns that seem to want to touch the sky – they are ingenious with their very wide bases and thin tops. Visiting this church is a magnificent experience, especially for photography lovers, as you can spend hours playing with the different lighting and visual effects of this impressive place. You can get there via direct flight to Barcelona or to Girona, Reus or Lleida–Alguaire.