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Frequently asked questions

We have the answers to your questions

In this section you can consult a selection of the most common questions asked about the Cathedral of Valencia.

If you have a question that we have not answered here, please contact us and we will help you.

List of FAQs

Choose a topic below.

Curiosities

  • Why are there pregnant women wandering around the Cathedral?

    It is a pious custom unique to this Cathedral; it involves making nine circles inside the temple in memory of the nine months that the Virgin Mary awaited the birth of Jesus.

    Expectant mothers pray before an image of the Virgin with the Child located in the ambulatory, and they are given a holy card with a prayer and a candle to light at home. While the mother is in labor, her family members pray.

  • See list of topics

About the Museum

  • What can you see in the Museum?

    The work on the new Museum has made accessible an archaeological excavation with Roman, Visigothic, Islamic, and medieval remains.

    In the sculpture section, notable pieces include authentic images from the Apostles’ Door (14th century) and the Mal Ladrón (16th century).

    In painting, the museum showcases panels from the 15th and 16th centuries by the finest Valencian masters, including Juan de Juanes. More modern works include canvases by Jerónimo Jacinto de Espinosa and Vicente López (18th–19th centuries).

    Unique pieces of goldsmithing include the reliquaries of the Kings of Aragon (14th–15th centuries) and the processional monstrance of Corpus Christi (20th century), the largest in the world.

  • See list of topics

About the Holy Chalice

  • Is this where you can see the Holy Chalice?

    The Holy Chalice of the Lord’s Supper, also known as the Holy Grail, is displayed in its beautiful chapel, built in the 14th century by Bishop Vidal de Blanes.

    The chapel is the final part of the visit to the Cathedral Museum.

  • See list of topics

About the Cathedral

  • What is the style of this Cathedral?

    It dominates the Gothic style, very austere at its beginning in the 13th century, becoming brighter and more elevated in the lantern and the tower of the 14th century.

    The Almoina door could be the last one in Spain made in Romanesque style. There are decorative elements from the Renaissance and Baroque styles, especially in the main chapel.

    In the 18th century., it was revested in the Neoclassical style, and finally, in the 20th century, the Gothic structure was recovered and the presbytery was adapted to the liturgy renewed by the liturgical movement.

  • In what year did construction begin?

    The first stone was laid on June 22, 1262.

  • Where is the crypt, how many are there?

    The Cathedral has three large burial crypts: one in the former chapter house (which is filled with rubble) and two others in the area of the former choir and at the entrance of the main nave. However, they have been out of use since the 19th century and are of no artistic interest.

  • Which famous people are buried there?

    In its chapel, the relics of Saint Thomas of Villanova are kept, and in marked tombs rest the remains of notable figures such as Ausiàs March, Gregorio Mayans, Pérez Bayer, as well as bishops and archbishops of Valencia from the 13th century to the present.

  • Are religious services still being held at the Cathedral?

    The Cathedral continues to fulfill the purposes for which it was built; it is the church of the Archbishop, where the most important liturgical acts of the Archdiocese are celebrated.

    The chapter of canons solemnly officiates the Liturgy of the Hours and the Mass every day in Gregorian chant; in addition, Masses are held on Sundays and weekdays with great attendance of the faithful, along with the sacraments of baptism, communion, penance, and marriage.

  • See list of topics

About the Archive

  • Where is the Valencia Cathedral Archive?

    The Archive is located inside the Cathedral, accessible from the Iron Door (Pza. de la Reina) and through the sacristy. Please inform the staff at the entrance counter that you are going to the Archive.

  • What collections can you find in the Cathedral Archive?
    The main holdings of the Archive consist of:
    • 9,061 parchments (12th-20th centuries)
    • 6,500 bundles (13th-20th centuries)
    • 400 codices (12th-20th centuries)
    • 113 incunabula (15th century)
    Among them, several special collections:
    • Notarial protocols
    • Sigillography (seals, matrices, and molds)
    • Musical Archive (6,000 musical scores and 180 choral books)
    • Plans, maps, drawings, and engravings
    • Photographic Archive
    And other incorporated collections:
    • Pious Almsgiving (14th-20th centuries)
    • Pietro Zampieri Collection (12th-20th centuries)
    • San Pedro Parish Collection (19th-20th centuries)
    • San Jaime Brotherhood Collection (15th-19th centuries)
    • Don Marcelino Olaechea Loizaga Collection, Archbishop of Valencia (1946-1966)
    • Roc Chabás Collection (19th-20th centuries)
    • Others: Cartuja de Portacoeli, Antonio Rodilla Zanón, Guillermo Hijarrubia, etc.

    In addition to the books and publications contained in our Auxiliary Library.

  • See list of topics

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February at Valencia Cathedral

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Cultural Visit

From 1 January to 30 June
and from 1 October to 31 December

From Monday to Friday, from 10:30 AM to 6:30 PM, Saturdays from 10:30 AM to 5:30 PM, and Sundays from 2:00 PM to 5:30 PM (last entry: Monday to Friday at 5:30 PM, Saturdays and Sundays at 4:30 PM)

See all schedules

Museum

From 1 January to 31 December

The Valencia Cathedral Museum is open from Monday to Saturday, from 10:30 AM to 6:30 PM, and on Sundays and public holidays from 2:00 PM to 6:30 PM or from 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM, depending on the application of winter or summer hours.

See all schedules

Bell Tower "Miguelete"

From 1 December to 28 February

The bell tower “el Miguelete” is open in autumn-winter (from December 1 to February 28) Monday to Friday from 10:00 AM to 6:45 PM, Saturdays and Sundays from 10:00 AM to 6:45 PM.

See all schedules

Masses

From 1 January to 30 June
and from 1 October to 31 December

Winter season schedule: Sundays and holidays at 8:00, 8:45, 9:30 (sung), 11:00, 12:00, 13:00, 19:00, and 20:00 h.; Monday to Friday at 8:00, 8:45, 9:30 (sung), 19:00, and 20:00 h.; Saturdays at 8:00, 8:45, 9:30 (sung), 18:00, 19:00, and 20:00 h.

See all schedules

Pastoral Office

From 1 January to 30 June
and from 1 October to 31 December

The pastoral office opens on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM and on Fridays from 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM.

See all schedules

Valencia Cathedral Archive

From 1 January to 31 December

The archive is open in the mornings on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:30 AM to 2:00 PM, and on Wednesdays also in the afternoon from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM, and is open from September 15 to July 15.

See all schedules

Special Celebrations

  • Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
    February 2.

Pious Exercises

  • Major Exposition of the Most Holy Sacrament
    Every Thursday at 7:30 PM, from October to June.
  • Thursday of the Holy Chalice
    Every Thursday at 7:45 PM, except on Holy Thursday and from July 1 to September 15.
  • Saturday Greeting
    Every Saturday, at 7:30 PM

Cathedral Choir

See activities
Events and schedules are subject to change without notice.