Virgin Mary (Our Lady of Hope) · 17th C

Basilica de la Macarena

37.4025° N · 5.9894° W|Seville, Spain

This church on the north side of the city is home to Seville's most revered image, La Macarena. She is the patron saint of matadors and taken out on procession each year.

On the northern tier of central Seville, the Basilica de la Macarena possesses the most revered image in Seville, "The Virgin of Hope" (Nuestra Señora de la Esperanza) which locals call La Macarena.

La Macarena is the patron saint of matadors and a favorite of Spanish gypsies. The Seville-born matador Joselito spent a large portion of his fortune to buy four emeralds for her statue. When he died in the ring in 1920, the Macarena dressed as a widow for a month.

The statue of La Macarena is attributed to the sculptor Pedro Roldán and thought to date from the end of the 17th century. Seated in a place of honor in the basilica, the beautiful Madonna statue is dressed in magnificent robes and jewels. Five teardrops run permanently down her elegant cheeks.

Each year on Good Friday, the holiest day of Semana Santa, the fraternity dedicated to La Macarena appears in procession, leading her image through the city streets in mourning for the death of her son.

The basilica also houses a treasury displaying rare ecclesiastical relics.

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37.4025° N · 5.9894° WSeville, Spain

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