St. Jago's Arch

St. Jago's Arch is a historic sandstone arch in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. It is the original entrance to a 16th-century Spanish church located at the southern limits of the old town.

St. Jago's Arch
St. Jago's Arch in Gibraltar with interpretation panel
Location of St. Jago's Arch within Gibraltar
Coordinates36.1351°N 5.3529°W / 36.1351; -5.3529
LocationSt. Jago's Barracks, Main Street, Gibraltar
TypeArch
MaterialSandstone
Completion date16th century
Dedicated toOur Lady of the Rosary

History

The ornate sandstone arch is set into the western façade of St. Jago's Barracks at the southern end of Main Street, near Southport Gates.[1] The arch is all that remains of the 16th century Spanish Hermitage of Our Lady of the Rosary (Spanish: Ermita de Nuestra Señora del Rosario).[1][2] When the British converted the church into military stores, following the 1704 Capture of Gibraltar, the arch was kept and set into the façade of the larger barracks.[2] It was once thought that the arch had been relocated to St. Jago's Barracks from the Spanish: Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Cabeza (Church of Our Lady of the Head)[2] in Villa Vieja (Old Town), within the precinct of the Moorish Castle, but it has since been proven that this was a misunderstanding and that the arch has always been in situ.[1] Anton van den Wyngaerde's 1567 detailed panoramic sketch of Gibraltar and its bay depicts the Hermitage of Our Lady of the Rosary at the southern limits of the city walls. [3]

Conservation

St. Jago's Arch is defined as a Category B Listed Structure by the Government of Gibraltar under section 40 of the Gibraltar Heritage Trust Act of 1989.[4] On 26 June 2013, Minister for Culture and Heritage Steven Linares MP, announced in his budget speech that a conservation project being carried out on the walls surrounding Southport Gates was being extended to include the restoration of St. Jago's Arch.[5] The project will include information and lighting of the monument.[6]

St. Jago's Arch
  • Hermitage of Our Lady of the Rosary labelled 'E' in Anton van den Wyngaerde's 1567 sketch
  • St. Jago's Arch c. 1900
  • St. Jago's Arch in 1920
  • St. Jago's Arch with Southport Gates in the background in 2010
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References
  1. Benady, Tito (1996). The Streets of Gibraltar: A Short History. Gibraltar: Gibraltar Books. pp. 16–17. ISBN 0948466 37 5.
  2. "Churches in Gibraltar prior to 1704". Roman Catholic Diocese of Gibraltar. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
  3. "Gibraltar en 1567 (detalle de la 'Vista panorámica de la bahía de Gibraltar hacia la ciudad con la costa africana en el fondo' de Anton van Den Wyngaerde conservado en el Ashmolean Museum de Oxford)" (in Spanish). Wikimedia Commons. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
  4. "Gibraltar Heritage Trust Act 1989" (PDF). Government of Gibraltar. Retrieved 16 September 2013.
  5. Linares, Steven (26 June 2013). "Full Text of Minister Linares' Budget Speech". Your Gibraltar TV. Retrieved 16 September 2013.
  6. "Inauguration of Restored Wall". Gibnews.net. 6 September 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2013.
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