Iglesia de Santa Margalida

Religious | Santa Margalida

Within the town center, at the highest point of Santa Margalida is the jewel of the village, the Parish Church of Santa Margalida. The retaining wall of the clay hill on which the temple is situated is one of the most attractive areas of the village. The church was built in the thirteenth century on the land where in Islamic times was located the farmhouse of Hiachat. Tradition says that the church would have taken its name due to the discovery of an image of Santa Margalida in a cave located on the land where the building was built. However, historical data suggest that the dedication to Santa Margalida would have been due to the fact that the first clergymen of the parish came from Santa Margalda de Empúries (Catalonia). With the passage of time, the temple became obsolete to accommodate the entire population and was replaced in 1660 by the current building. The temple is a clear example of Baroque religious architecture of the Part Forana of the island of Mallorca. It highlights its facade only decorated with impost lines and the rose window. The main portal and the figures that accompany it are also striking: Santa Margarita, San Pedro and San Juan Bautista. In its interior is preserved part of the old Gothic altarpiece that must have presided over the former temple, with one of the most important representations of Mallorcan Gothic of Sienese influence that are preserved in Mallorca. On the other hand, there are other altarpieces from later periods also outstanding, such as the main altarpiece of the eighteenth century; the altarpiece of San Francisco from the late sixteenth century or the altarpiece of San Sebastian.