Spain

A few memories of our Spanish trip in Summer 2024 with Navarre, Castile & Leon and Aragon on the menu.

Full map of all our Spanish pages

Other Things

Thinking of our next destination: Italy and Portugal come to mind, or maybe the time has finally come for a US road trip…

Translate & Share

What's this?
Version française
Deutsche Version

The Museum of the Rosario de Cristal in Zaragoza

(vero;2024-Nov-21)

El Rosario de Cristal (Crystal Rosary) is a religious procession of brightly lit lanterns and floats which takes place in the city of Zaragoza every year in the evening of October 13th as part of the one-week Pilar Festival. If you cannot make it to the festival, we strongly recommend visiting the museum, Plaza de San Pedro Nolasco where lanterns and floats are stored during the year. The entry fee is 5€ including the audio-guide. Entry to the museum is free if you have purchased the 10€ combined entry ticket for the Seo cathedral and the basilica of our Lady of the Pillar (prices as per September 2024).

See our blog entry for some history and details.

The lantern of the Cross, the first lantern opening the procession of El Rosario de Cristal.

Banner with Our Lady of the Pillar standing in front of a depiction of Zaragoza featuring the basilica and the bridge over the river Ebro.

Left: one of the Glorious lanterns (the Resurrection). Right: one of the Sorrowful lanterns (the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane).

A Joyful Mystery lantern donated by the city of Madrid. The coat-of-arms on the right is the one of Madrid as per its design in the years between 1931 and 1939. The left one is the one of the city of Zaragoza.

Detail of the base of the Sorrowful lantern of the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.

The motto on this lantern reads Virtus Incendit Vires meaning Virtue kindles Strength.

Lantern for the Glorious Mystery of the Annunciation.

Lantern for the Sorrowful Mystery of the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Lantern for the Glorious Mystery of the Resurrection.

Lantern La Marina donated by the Spanish Navy in 1944. It represents the lanterns of the Turkish galleys captured in the Battle of Lepanto (7 October 1571).

Left: the lantern of La Marina. Right: the base of the lantern of the Salve (Hail Mary or Ave Maria).

Lantern of the Salve (Hail Mary or Ave Maria).

The colourful lanterns and floats tend to mask the beauty of the Church of the Sacred Heart.

This lantern donated by the city of Toledo represents its Alcázar.

One of the few floats without a lantern: the Assumption of Mary.

A lantern representing Santo Dominguito de Val. Dominguito (c. 1243-1250) was an altar-boy and chorister ritually murdered by some Jews of Zaragoza. His tortured corpse was found in the river Ebro and his bones were later interred in the cathedral. Although the Vatican removed Dominguito from the official Roman Catholic liturgical calendar, he is still revered as a saint and celebrated on 31 August in the diocese of Zaragoza. His relics are kept for devotion in the chapel of Santo Dominguito del Val of La Seo.

Lantern of Santo Dominquito: Dominquito singing with other choir-boys.

Lantern of Santo Dominquito: Dominquito walking to his death with one of his murderers waiting for him in the dark.

Lantern of Santo Dominquito: Dominquito brought to his resting place in La Seo.

Lantern representing a model of the Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar in Zaragoza; even the interior has been decorated.

Monumental lantern of the Hispanidad (Hispanicity). It is an allegory of Americas's discovery by Christopher Columbus with his ship the Santa Maria sporting a statue of the Virgin of Pilar which also happens to be the patron saint of Latin America, whose countries are represented by the flags surrounding the sail.

Front view of the lantern of the Hispanidad. The dates left and right of the ship are the dates of Colombus' voyage: departed on January 2 1492, first spotted land of America on October 12 1492.

Lantern of the Marian Shrines featuring depictions and mentions of Marian sanctuaries around the world.

Detail of the base of the lantern of the Marian shrines.

Santo Domingo de Guzman, a.k.a Saint Dominic, founder of the Dominican order. Dominic had a vision in a church at Prouille (France) in 1208, during which the Virgin Mary appeared and gave him a rosary for his prayers, earning herself the title of Lady of the Rosary. The Dominican order put the Rosary Prayer at the heart of their movement and were essential in spreading and popularising the use of the rosary.

A modern style lantern representing Santo Domingo de Guzman (Saint Dominic, see previous picture).

This picture of Thomas standing in front of the Basilica Float gives an idea of its size.

[Go to Top]

Go back to Landscapes of the Bardenas Reales or go up to Photos