Monastery of Santa María de El Paular

One of the must-sees in your visit to Alameda is the Monastery of Santa María de El Paular, located in the neighboring town of Rascafría. Of imposing architecture, the magnificent gothic alabaster altarpiece presides over its church, without forgetting the grating of Francisco de Salamanca and the two sixteenth-century masonry; the old Chapter House, where we find the Baroque style altarpiece, the work of José de la Torre; the Chapel of El Sagrario or Transparente; the Cloister, of a delicate flamboyant Gothic built by Juan Guas between 1484 and 1486 and exterior of Gothic-Mudejar style; the series of 52 baroque paintings by Vicente Carducho made between 1626 and 1632; to cite some significant elements.

 

Carthusian Monastery for 450 years since its foundation in 1390, since 1954 it is guarded by a community of contemplative Benedictine monks, belonging to the Sublacense Congregation. Apart from the divine office and practicing singing and music, they dedicate themselves to the conservation and maintenance of the monastery, to show it to those who wish to visit it, to celebrate weddings, to receive guests in the hostelry and to elaborate homemade products of their own recipe or elaborated in other monasteries and that are sold in the shop of the monastery.

 

The journey to this enclave (located a few kilometers from the town) is more than recommended by the beauty of the centuries-old groves of elms, willows, ash and oak trees, as well as the traditional vegetable gardens that accompany this beautiful walk. As additional attractions, in the vicinity of the Monastery we find the Environmental Education Center Puente del Perdón, the Giner de los Ríos Arboretum and the Puente del Perdón, a bridge with history built in the 18th century.