The exterior of Gaudí’s church masterpiece now complete after 144 years of construction
The Basilica towering over Barcelona
The exterior of the Basílica de la Sagrada Família in Barcelona, Spain, was finally completed this week, 144 years after construction began on architect Antoni Gaudí’s greatest creation.
Last week saw the upper arm of this roughly 56-ft (17-m) tall cross fitted with the help of a giant crane. That final piece, which is nearly 15 ft (4.5 m) tall, completes the grouping of the six central towers of the church – and brings the basilica’s height to a dizzying 566 ft (172.5 m).
Interestingly, the cross was built in Germany using white enameled ceramic tiles, stone interior and glass that were made in the Spanish region of Catalonia. It was then transported in parts back to Barcelona by ferry and trucks, and finally assembled at the church.
Though more work is required in the interior of the church, for the first time in its history all outside cranes will be removed and it will be visible unobstructed.
More information about Gaudi and this church can be found here. I also posted an evening pause about this monumental work of art in 2023.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
The Basilica towering over Barcelona
The exterior of the Basílica de la Sagrada Família in Barcelona, Spain, was finally completed this week, 144 years after construction began on architect Antoni Gaudí’s greatest creation.
Last week saw the upper arm of this roughly 56-ft (17-m) tall cross fitted with the help of a giant crane. That final piece, which is nearly 15 ft (4.5 m) tall, completes the grouping of the six central towers of the church – and brings the basilica’s height to a dizzying 566 ft (172.5 m).
Interestingly, the cross was built in Germany using white enameled ceramic tiles, stone interior and glass that were made in the Spanish region of Catalonia. It was then transported in parts back to Barcelona by ferry and trucks, and finally assembled at the church.
Though more work is required in the interior of the church, for the first time in its history all outside cranes will be removed and it will be visible unobstructed.
More information about Gaudi and this church can be found here. I also posted an evening pause about this monumental work of art in 2023.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
I love this for so many reasons.
I need to finally retire and go on that European church tour.
Meanwhile, in the Caliphate of New York City, its residents are treated to this: https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/02/islamic-prayer-is-now-broadcasting-streets-new-york/
Decades ago, Samuel P. Huntington wrote about such things in his book Who Are We? The Challenges to America’s National Identity, but nobody (except, perhaps, the Gramscian radicals in academia and the nether reaches of the Democrat Party who were working so assiduously to undermine it) payed much attention. https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/samuel-p-huntington/who-are-we-2/
Now, this process of cultural suicide has become so advanced in Europe that even Catholic Spain may succumb, and the leadership class in England and Northern Europe seems almost joyous in their effective surrender to Islam and their embrace of the authoritarian, one party bureaucratic state.
I toured it some years ago. Gorgeous building. They charge admission to get in, with the money generated being used to fund the construction.
If you have the chance to see it, take a guided tour. In the basement they have models of the original design and show the engineering process behind the building support arches.
Sadly, given what is happening in Spain now, one wonders how long until it is turned into a mosque.