Concatedral de Santa María de Vigo

This co-cathedral in Vigo, popularly known as La Colegiata (‘The Collegiate Church’) is considered one of the best examples of Neoclassical architecture in Galicia. Originally there was another church and a cemetery on the site, but due to their poor state of preservation and the fact that new legislative measures recommended the construction of cemeteries outside the city centre, a new church was built. It contains a statue of the Christ of Victory, the city’s most important religious symbol, which is commemorated with a procession every first Sunday of August. The church has a basilica plan and a nave with two smaller side aisles. They are separated by twelve Doric columns supporting entablature with triglyphs and metopes. It has a simple, symmetrical facade and the nave is finished with a cornice adorned with mutules and straight shapes, crowned by a triangular pediment. Two identical towers stand outside the aisles, which are more Baroque that the rest of the building. A sundial is on the right side of the building, designed by sculptor Juan Agustín Domínguez in 1837. The church is located in the historic city centre, near the market of A Pedra and the square Plaza de la Constitución. Construction began in 1811 under the design of architect Melchor de Prado y Mariño.