Iglesia de Montesión

Religious | Palma de Mallorca

In 1561, the Society of Jesus settled in Mallorca. The Jesuits occupied the place that until then had been the site of the first Estudio General Luliano, formerly the site of the old Jewish synagogue. In 1571, work began on the new church. The enormous cultural and socio-economic influence of the Jesuits was not looked upon favorably by the royal power, which suppressed the order between 1767 and 1815. The doorway of the church has a complex system of uprights alternating pilasters and Solomonic columns decorated with floral motifs and composite capitals. Above the voussoir portal we find the frieze and the profusely decorated archivolts. The tympanum frames a large shield, supported by two angels. It is the coat of arms of the sponsor of the works, Ramon de Verí. On both sides are statues of the first Jesuit saints, Ignatius of Loyola on the left and Francis Xavier on the right. The portal is crowned by an image of the Immaculate Conception, above the crescent moon, and a representation of the devil in the form of a beast and, above, the coat of arms of Saint Ignatius. A semicircular dripstone protects the whole. In the upper part there is a rose window with smooth moldings and a triangular pediment. The interior of the temple has a single nave with quadrangular chancel and six rectangular chapels on each side. The roof of the nave has a half-barrel vault with lunettes, supported by pilasters with grooved shafts. The chapels and the presbytery have a cross vault. The main altarpiece was begun in 1607, designed by Camilo Silvestre Perino. On the left side of the presbytery we find the tomb of Ramon de Verí. The first chapel on the left side contains the tomb of Saint Alonso Rodríguez, who was for many years the doorkeeper of Monti-sion, until his death in 1617. This chapel was begun in 1635. It has a cross-shaped floor plan and the elevation is covered with marble slabs. The mausoleum with the body of the saint dates from 1825. In other rooms are remarkable the cell of Saint Alonso, set in the time of the saint, and the Gothic altarpiece of Monti-sion, erected in a chapel separated from the big church. Portal. It presents a complex system of pillars that alternate pilasters and Solomonic columns decorated with floral motifs and with capitals of composite order. The portal is crowned by an image of the Immaculate Conception