Plaza de la Reina
Plaza de la Reina is Located in the heart of the historic city center. The square is an emblematic square of Valencia. Thanks to its huge cathedral that you can’t but notice.
The Cathedral is Built in the 13th century on a roman temple that trace its history. Baroque style and Romanesque the cathedral is today predominantly Gothic.
Within the cathedral you will also find a museum that exhibit more than 90 works of art including that of the famous artists Maella y Goya. In this cathedral, where art and history are closely linked, we can find the Holy Grail, the famous cup in polished agate of oriental origin that Jesus would have used during the last supper and that is genarally associated or considerate to be the holy grail. After being hidden in the Pyrenee, it was Alfonso the magnanimous who brought it to the Palace of Valencia.
Today you can find it in the Chapel of the Holy calice. Other treasures of this cathedral are its Renaissance frescoes, located above the main altar, painted by Paolo da San Leocadio and Francesco Pagano from 1476, but it is only recently that these paintings were discovered, since they had been covered during the baroque reform of the presbytery of the cathedral.
Plaza de la Reina is not Only limited to this monument. The square was originally built as a result of Valencia ‘s desire to have a large place. The marriage of Alfonso XII and Maria de las Mercedes de Orleans was the perfect opportunity for thew city to redesign the area. The square should have been named after queen maria, but for the sake of convenience the citizens preferred to call it queen’s square. But the Project took a long time to be approved. In fact, the city council had a hard time deciding on the design of the square and it was only in 1959 that the first fountain appeared after a competition of ideas won by the Valencian Alberto Figuerola.
Today this square is very animated. In the surroundings you can find many stores and restaurants, for example the Santa Catalina horchateria dating from more than two centuries, it is the oldest cafe of the city. You will find there this famous typical drink of Valencia but also local pastries like pumpkin fritters. Also nearby Calle del Mar you will find for example galleries and antique stores. Around this square there are small streets where you can get some funny time and discover lot of things. Currently the square is being renovated to make it even more comfortable. For example, there will soon be a children’s park, drinking water fountains and many other changes.