Museo de los Condestables de Castilla
Museum of the Monastery of Santa Clara in Medina de Pomar, with the recumbent Christ by Gregorio Fernández, a panel by Memling and the Velasco pantheon.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The monastery of Santa Clara was founded on 11 January 1313 by Sancho Sánchez de Velasco, adelantado mayor (chief adelantado) of Castile. The Velasco family, who came to hold the office of Constable of Castile, turned it into a family pantheon and financed works of great value, in which masters such as the Colonia family, Diego de Siloé and Felipe de Bigarny took part. The complex, which is still inhabited by a community of Poor Clares, was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural (asset of cultural interest) in 1992.
The Museo de los Condestables de Castilla opened in 2013, to mark the 700th anniversary of the monastery, in spaces of the former convent such as the crypt or pudridero (charnel house). The visit begins in the church, with its Baroque altarpiece, the Capilla de la Concepción and the mausoleum of the third Constable and his wife, attributed to Bigarny, and continues through the cloister and the museum rooms.
Among its pieces stand out the recumbent Christ by Gregorio Fernández, from around 1622–1624, a Flemish panel of the Adoration of the Kings by Hans Memling, the funeral pall of 1528, embroidered vestments from the 16th to the 18th centuries, chalices and reliquaries. The chapter house is notable for its coffered ceiling (artesonado).
Highlights
- Recumbent Christ by Gregorio Fernández
- Adoration of the Kings, Flemish panel by Hans Memling
- Funeral pall of Iñigo Fernández de Velasco (1528)
- Mausoleum of the third Constable, attributed to Felipe de Bigarny
- Chapter house with coffered ceiling
- Capilla de la Concepción
Permanent exhibitions
- Colección del Museo de los Condestables – Rooms around the cloister with paintings, textiles, vestments and objects of the Velasco family, including the Memling panel and the 1528 funeral pall.
- Cristo yacente de Gregorio Fernández – Baroque sculpture of great realism, displayed in the monastery's pudridero and considered the most valuable work in the heritage of Medina de Pomar.
- Founded
- 2013
- Operated by
- Monasterio de Santa Clara
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €4 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €3.50Pensioners |
| Children & teens | –Free admission for children, who must always be accompanied by an adult (the tourism portal gives the age as 14). |
| Seniors | €3.50Pensioners. |
| Groups | €5 per personBooked guided visit for groups, €5 per person. |
| Groups with audio guide | €4 |
Free admission: Tuesday, last hour of the afternoon
The visit includes the church and the museum.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Getting there & parking
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Amenities & dining
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Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| Audio guide | yes |
| Good to know | There are audio guide visits and booked guided visits. From July to September the Capilla de la Concepción is closed and the upper choir can be visited; the rest of the year it is the other way round. |
