Christ of the Lanterns

Walk slowly into this square. Its white walls, cobbles and silence make it one of the most photographed corners of Córdoba, especially at nightfall, when the lanterns come on and the Christ seems suspended in the darkness.

1A Christ to make amends

Its official name is the Christ of Atonement and Mercy. It was promoted in 1794 by Fray Diego José de Cádiz, a Capuchin preacher who filled squares with his sermons, and carved by the Cordoban sculptor Juan Navarro León in white marble, on a cross of black marble. The idea of «atonement» was to offer Christ public reparation for the offences he received. The pedestal is engraved with the Miserere psalm, and the cross bears a line from St Paul in Latin: «And that rock was Christ».

The square was the forecourt of the Capuchin convent of the Holy Angel, which still stands next door. The lanterns that give the monument its popular name were electrified in the twentieth century and replaced by the present ones in 1984.

Fresh flowers and candles are almost always left at the foot of the railing: more than two centuries on, popular devotion is still very much alive.

Its fame spread through cinema: in 1958 a film bearing its name was released, with a song performed by Antonio Molina, and scenes from many others have been shot here. During Holy Week the square fills up to watch the brotherhoods go by.

2What to look for

• The eight lanterns on curved iron arms.
• The contrast between the white Christ and the black cross.
• The Latin inscriptions on the pedestal and the cross.