The Church of Santa Maria del PI or St. Mary's Basilica (Basilica de Santa Maria del Pi) - Gothic Church of the 14th century, located in the Gothic quarter of Barcelona's Old town.
It is known that in 987 outside the city walls to the West of Barcelona there was a small Romanesque Church, dedicated to the virgin of the pine (just like the Santa Maria del PI).
The Church was built between 1319 and 1391 in the year and opened on 17 June 1453. The style of the Church was Catalan Gothic, with a single nave almost devoid of elegance and jewelry.
In 1379 Peter IV the Ceremonial call made donations, to start the construction of the bell tower.
Earthquake in Catalonia in 1428 caused serious damage to the Church, especially the facade.
In 1714 during the war of the Spanish succession, the Church suffered serious damage. Restoration work was carried out in the years 1863-1884 in 1915.
In 1936 the Church was destroyed by a fire intentionally kindled by anarchists. The Church was restored after the civil war.
On the main facade of the Church is a large rose window, an exact copy of the original window 1940, which was destroyed by fire in 1936. Below the window is a Gothic arch of the main entrance.
The main facade of the Church overlooks the Piazza Del PI (plaça Del Pi).
Side facade of the Church of St. Mary has protruding supports to support the weight of the arches and vault of the nave. Between each pair of supports is a Lancet window. In the center of the facade is a Door Avemaria.
Side facade of the Church overlooks the Piazza de San Jose Oriol (Plaça de Sant Josep Oriol) with a statue of the Catalan poet, writer and playwright Angela Himera.
The rear facade also has buttresses and Lancet Windows give light to the semicircular apse. In the back of the apse is the ancient door of 1578, which had previously provided access to the Church via the rear facade.
The Church belfry has an octagonal shape that rises up to 54 meters. The thickness of the walls at the base is equal to 3.55 meters. In the belfry there are six bells, the largest of which is the "Anthony" having a diameter of 1.4 meters and a weight of 1 806 pounds. The construction of the bell tower was started in 1460 and completed in 1497.
The interior of the Church consists of a nave, consisting of seven rectangular sections, each of which is covered with a vaulted ceiling and with side-chapels placed between the supporting columns. The internal length of the nave is 54 meters, width - 16.5 meters and a height of 12.2 meters.
The main altar of the Basilica is made of alabaster and is the work of Joaquim de Rosai and de Ramis. It was installed in 1967.
In the presbytery there is a statue of Santa Maria del PI, which has a height of 3.3 meters and established in 1973 by the sculptor Enric Monjo.
In the Basilica there is the opportunity to visit the Museum premises, including the Treasury of the Basilica and the crypt, the garden and the bell tower with views of part of Barcelona. The cost of visiting the Basilica of 4.50 Euros, the bell tower (observation deck) - 9 Euros.
