It is expected to be completed 144 years after the foundation stone was laid
Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia basilica is expected to be completed in 2026, according to a new date announced, 144 years after the first stone was laid.
The president of the organization tasked with completing Antoni Gaudi’s masterpiece announced the date last Wednesday, which coincides with the centenary of the building’s architect’s death.
Esteve Camps said he had the money and materials to finish the building, including the 172.5m central tower dedicated to Jesus Christ, making the Sagrada Familia the tallest building in Barcelona.
Although the building is due to be completed by 2026, work on the sculptures and decorative details and, above all, the controversial staircase leading to what will eventually be the main entrance, is expected to continue until 2034.
When work began in 1882, the area around Sagrada Familia was farmland, but in the intervening years the town grew up around the church. The ladder will span two large city blocks, displacing approximately 1,000 families and businesses.
While some Gaudi scholars dispute this, Camps insists that the staircase was always part of the architect’s design.
“We are following GaudÃ’s plan to the letter, he said. “We are his heirs and we cannot renounce his work. The plan presented to the local authority in 1915, signed by GaudÃ, includes the staircase.’ He added that he was in discussions with Barcelona mayor Jaume Collboni about the plan, as the local authority has the final say. “I don’t have a crystal ball to tell me when they’re going to make a decision,” he said.
Before tourists started visiting the church, the work to complete it was to be financed solely by donations from repentant sinners, which made the cash flow unpredictable and many doubted that the work would ever be completed. For decades now, tourism has guaranteed a steady income for the church, with almost 5 million visitors a year paying €25-40 per visit. Slightly more than half of the 125 million euros it brings in is earmarked for the completion of the works. How the rest is spent remains a mystery as the church is not required to publish its accounts.
Source :Skai
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