Església Parroquial de Santa Margalida

The first documentation of a church in Santa Margalida dates from 1248, just after the Catalan-Aragonese conquest of Mallorca (1229-1231).

Remains and artifact tells, that on this exact site, there had been a holy sanctuary long before a church was built.

This place, which is on a hill, is known as “the objective” as you can see all over the countryside of Santa Margalida from up here. Back in early medieval times it was common to build religious constructions on hills, as people believed this would bring them closer to God.

Up through the 16th century, a growing congregation meant that the old church no longer had the capacity to house the many churchgoers, which was why the city council wasn’t late to agree that a new temple had to be built.

The construction of this new church temple, which is the one you see today, was finished in 1679. The church has a basilica ground floor with a large ship and lateral side chapels. One of these side chapels contains the lateral old entrance of the church which has the inscription “entrance of the gents”.

Above the classic baroque main entrance of the church, notice the very detailed motif of Santa Margalida, the patron saint of the village.

The bell tower was built in the years 1853-55, and with a needle spire as crown.

Inside the church you’ll see the altarpiece, probably dating back from the 14th century, displaying Santa Margalida (Saint Margaret). This altarpiece is quite special, and if religion and/or history has your interest, make sure to get a picture of this. On the altarpiece is some inscription from “the Mallorcan school”, which refers to the architecture and lifestyles of the Mallorcan people.

One more thing to notice inside the church of Santa Margalida, is the liturgical monstrance from 1564, made in pure silver and decorated with angels playing music instruments.