Plaza del Cristo de los Faroles (Capuchinos), Córdoba

Its origin lies in the Capuchin Convent, founded in 1629 on houses the order bought from the Marquis of Almunia. The friars moved into the building in 1633 and five years later, on 6 January 1638, construction of the convent church began. The Church of Los Dolores, attached to the convent, was not finished until 1728.

In 1730 the Capuchin community ceded part of the land to the City Council to open a public passage between the Axerquía and the Villa through the Cuesta del Bailío. That gesture turned the convent courtyard into the open square we know today, although for decades it was still called Plaza de Almunia or del Corbacho.

The change of name came in 1794, when the friar Diego José de Cádiz promoted the placing of a crucified Christ carved in white marble, with a black stone cross, a work attributed to the stonemason Juan Navarro León. The image was officially named Cristo de los Desagravios y Misericordia, but the eight wrought-iron lanterns around it led the people of Córdoba to rename it straight away the Cristo de los Faroles (Christ of the Lanterns), a name that ended up applying to the square as well.

The convent did not fare as well as its Christ. It suffered three suppressions, in 1810, 1821 and the definitive one under Mendizábal in 1836, and much of the building was sold and demolished, with materials reused in the construction of the Tejares bullring. The Church of Los Dolores and the Cristo de los Faroles survived that demolition and remain the heart of the square today.

To see the essentials of the square you need no more than ten minutes walking slowly. The logical route starts in the centre, next to the Christ, and goes round the buildings that surround it.

The central figure is a crucified Christ in white marble on a black stone cross, raised on a hexagonal base. Around it, a wrought-iron railing marks out the small enclosure: it appeared anonymously on 1 March 1929, donated by someone who never wished to be identified, and its original height later had to be lowered so as not to hide the four stone columns at the corners.

On one side of the square stands the sober, whitewashed façade of the Convent Church of the Santo Ángel, current home of the Capuchin Fathers at Plaza de Capuchinos number 5. It is the part that best sums up what the convent founded in 1629 was, before the suppressions of the 19th century.

Next to the convent, the Church of Los Dolores occupies the site of the former Hospital of San Jacinto, where incurable patients were cared for. Its façade, completed in 1728, is what gives the square its greatest visual depth when seen from the Cuesta del Bailío.

The eight lanterns around the Christ originally ran on oil and are what gave the sculpture and the whole square their nickname. The ones seen today are not the originals: they were replaced in 1984 and restored in 2015, and are lit at dusk together with the rest of the street lighting, which is when the square has its most characteristic atmosphere.

Plaza de Capuchinos is a public space and, as such, you can walk through it and see the Cristo de los Faroles at any time of day or night, with no ticket or booking. In fact, much of its fame is due precisely to night visits, when the eight lanterns are lit and the square is almost silent.

Access to the interior of the Church of Los Dolores and the Convent Church of the Santo Ángel is a different matter, as they can only be visited during worship hours. If the aim is just to see the Cristo de los Faroles and the outdoor ensemble of the square, there is no timetable to keep to.

The most common way to get there is up the Cuesta del Bailío, the street that historically connected the Axerquía with the Villa through this very point. You can also enter via Calle Conde de Torres Cabrera, at the opposite end of the square.

From the Mosque or the Jewish Quarter, the walk to Plaza de Capuchinos takes barely a few minutes, and many night routes through the historic centre include this stop precisely because of the lanterns lit at dusk. If you already plan to explore the Jewish Quarter, it is worth adding this short detour before or after the visit.

If you want to discover the Plaza del Cristo de los Faroles within a wider route through the historic centre, the most convenient option is the Free Tour of Córdoba, free with a voluntary tip of 10 to 15 euros per person and lasting about 2 hours. It usually includes stops in the Jewish Quarter and around the historic centre, the area from which you also walk to this square.

If you want to get to know it with more context, the best way is to book the Córdoba night free tour with an official guide.