El Transparente

El Transparente is a Baroque

Baroque

Baroque is an artistic style prevalent from the late 16th century to the early 18th century. The popularity and success of the Baroque style was encouraged by the Roman Catholic Church, which had decided at the time of the Council of Trent that the arts should communicate religious themes in...

 altarpiece in the ambulatory

Ambulatory

The ambulatory is the covered passage around a cloister. The term is sometimes applied to the procession way around the east end of a cathedral or large church and behind the high altar.-Architectural context:Aisles that line the nave extend through the transept and continue in a half-circle that...

 of the Cathedral of Toledo

Cathedral of Toledo

The Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo, also called Primate Cathedral of Toledo, is a church in Spain. The seat of the Archdiocese of Toledo, it is one of the three 13th century High Gothic cathedrals in Spain and is considered to be the pinnacle of the Gothic style in Spain...

. Its name refers to the unique illumination provided by a skylight in the vault above. It was created in 1729-1732 by Narciso Tomé and his 4 sons (2 architects, 1 painter and 1 sculptor). The use of light and of mixed materials (marble, bronze, paint, stucco) may reflect the influence of Bernini's Cathedra in St Peter's, Rome.

According to James Michener in his book, Iberia (1968), the Transparente was installed to allow light to pass from the ambulatory behind the high altar (or 'reredos' as he calls it), onto the tabernacle (container for the Blessed Sacrament of consecrated bread and wine) which stayed in constant shadow because of the tall reredos.

Not only was a hole cut into the top of the back thick wall of the cathedral above the ambulatory behind the high altar, but another hole was cut into the high altar itself to allow a shaft of light to come down to illuminate the tabernacle like a spotlight.

After the 2 holes were cut, Tomé and sons designed a way to connect the 2 by sculpting a company of angels, saints, prophets and cardinals.

El Transparente is a Baroque

Baroque

Baroque is an artistic style prevalent from the late 16th century to the early 18th century. The popularity and success of the Baroque style was encouraged by the Roman Catholic Church, which had decided at the time of the Council of Trent that the arts should communicate religious themes in...

 altarpiece in the ambulatory

Ambulatory

The ambulatory is the covered passage around a cloister. The term is sometimes applied to the procession way around the east end of a cathedral or large church and behind the high altar.-Architectural context:Aisles that line the nave extend through the transept and continue in a half-circle that...

 of the Cathedral of Toledo

Cathedral of Toledo

The Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo, also called Primate Cathedral of Toledo, is a church in Spain. The seat of the Archdiocese of Toledo, it is one of the three 13th century High Gothic cathedrals in Spain and is considered to be the pinnacle of the Gothic style in Spain...

. Its name refers to the unique illumination provided by a skylight in the vault above. It was created in 1729-1732 by Narciso Tomé and his 4 sons (2 architects, 1 painter and 1 sculptor). The use of light and of mixed materials (marble, bronze, paint, stucco) may reflect the influence of Bernini's Cathedra in St Peter's, Rome.

According to James Michener in his book, Iberia (1968), the Transparente was installed to allow light to pass from the ambulatory behind the high altar (or 'reredos' as he calls it), onto the tabernacle (container for the Blessed Sacrament of consecrated bread and wine) which stayed in constant shadow because of the tall reredos.

Not only was a hole cut into the top of the back thick wall of the cathedral above the ambulatory behind the high altar, but another hole was cut into the high altar itself to allow a shaft of light to come down to illuminate the tabernacle like a spotlight.

After the 2 holes were cut, Tomé and sons designed a way to connect the 2 by sculpting a company of angels, saints, prophets and cardinals. A mass of angels and clouds disguises the hole that allows light through the hole in the back of the high altar. Abstract designs of robes and foliage masked the architectural piercings that were made so the hole in the back of the altar is hidden from the viewer.