Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales

Over het museum

The monastery was founded in 1559 by Joanna of Austria, sister of Philip II, on the site of a former palace that had belonged to the imperial treasurer Alonso Gutiérrez. The Poor Clare community moved in that same year, and the church was completed in 1564. The works to convert the palace into a convent were directed by Diego Sillero. Over the centuries it received many noblewomen and members of the royal family, and this is the origin of the valuable heritage it preserves.

The main staircase, with two flights, dates from around 1525, and its wall paintings were made between 1658 and 1661. The church, with a single nave and barrel vault, was remodelled in the mid-18th century by Diego de Villanueva. A fire in 1862 destroyed the high altarpiece by Gaspar Becerra, and the present one comes from the former Jesuit novitiate.

Among its treasures are the series of Rubens tapestries on the triumph of the Eucharist, displayed in the cloister, the praying statue of Princess Joanna by Pompeo Leoni, and a Virgin and Child by Bernardino Luini. Today the monastery, managed by Patrimonio Nacional, remains a cloistered convent of Poor Clares (Coletinas), and part of the building is visited with a guide.

Hoogtepunten

• Main staircase with 17th-century wall paintings
• Rubens tapestries on the triumph of the Eucharist
• Praying statue of Joanna of Austria, by Pompeo Leoni
• Virgin and Child by Bernardino Luini
• Capilla del Milagro
• One-hour guided tour

Vaste collectie

• Visita guiada al monasterio – One-hour guided tour of the main staircase, the cloister with the Rubens tapestries, the chapels, and the rooms with painting and sculpture from the House of Habsburg.

Opgericht

1559

Beheerder

Patrimonio Nacional

Toegangsprijzen & kortingen

Gratis toegang: Free admission on 18 May, on 12 October, and on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 16:00 to 18:30 (at the ticket office only, with supporting documents, for citizens of the European Union, Ibero-American countries and other accepted groups).

Free tickets are only obtained at the ticket office. Unemployed people with a job-seeker card, ICOM members, official guides and teaching staff with credentials also enter free. Buying online adds about €0.77 in handling fees. The Bono Cultural Joven is accepted.

Toegankelijkheid

• Rolstoeltoegankelijk: niet aanwezig
• Lift: geen informatie
• Aangepast toilet: geen informatie
• Gehandicaptenparkeerplaats: geen informatie
• Hulphonden welkom: geen informatie
• Tastmodellen / voelbare objecten: geen informatie
• Rondleidingen in gebarentaal: geen informatie
• Informatie in eenvoudige taal: geen informatie
• Audiodescriptie: geen informatie

According to the Patrimonio Nacional ticket sales website, the visit currently has no access for people with disabilities.

Kinderen & gezin

Het museum heeft hierover geen informatie gepubliceerd.

Bereikbaarheid & parkeren

The entrance is at Plaza de las Descalzas, 3.

Service & horeca

• Kluisjes

There are ticket offices (lockers) that close one hour before the monastery closes.

Evenementen & zaalverhuur

Het museum heeft hierover geen informatie gepubliceerd.

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