Iglesia Santa Ana - Seville

The Santa Ana church in Triana is of great importance for Seville. It was in this parish where, until the construction of the Puente de Isabel bridge in 1945, the processions during Holy Week from the Triana district went to confession. In Spanish that is: where they held their 'Estación de Penitencia'.

Until then, there was only a boat bridge connecting Triana with Seville , so the processions could not cross the river. Moreover , the Santa Ana Church is the first Christian place of worship in Seville. It is not, like many churches, built on top of a mosque or on Roman foundations.

After the conquest of Seville from the Arabs, construction of the church began in 1276 by order of King Alfonso X. According to legend, the building was named Santa Ana (the mother of Mary) because the king was miraculously cured of an eye problem by praying to her. He had the church built in Triana near 'el castillo de Triana' where there was a small Christian settlement.

The church was initially surrounded by a fortress as times were still turbulent. After the earthquakes of 1355 and 1755, the church was continuously restored and eventually it has a Gothic-Mudéjar architecture. The beautiful Baroque altarpiece is the most important in the city, created by the Flemish artist Pedro de Campaña around 1557 (his actual birth name was Pieter Kempeneer). The works tell the story of Maria and her parents, her father Joachim and her mother Anna.

Willem Vandenameele