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St. Paschal Baylón Basilica and Royal Sepulchre


Vila-real

Built over the old Our Lady of the Rosary chapel stands the St. Paschal Basilica dedicated to the patron saint of Vila-real. The basilica is flanked by two 50-metre bell towers with the largest swinging bell in the world and one of the best chimes anywhere on the planet.

The Royal Chapel and saint’s sepulchre, inaugurated on 17 May 1992 upon the 4th centennial of the death of St. Paschal, are the work of the prestigious local painter and sculptor Vicente Llorens Poy. Particularly standing out are the tomb on which lies the recumbent silver image of St. Paschal and the cell where he died, which is integrated into a 15-metre tall altarpiece. At the entrance to the basilica is the image of St. Peter of Alcantara (18th century), a masterpiece by Ignacio de Vergara, while the sanctuary museum is located in the Pouet del Sant room with a large collection of religious works of art.

The visit ends at the convent adjacent to the basilica where visitors can get one of the popular St. Paschal cordonnets, a wool cord artisan made by the convent’s Clarisse nuns which has become a real symbol and talisman in Vila-real.

 


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