Leilão Bidspirit | Portico of Astorga Cathedral (León,

Portico of Astorga Cathedral (León, Spain) - Black and white photographic emulsion. Early 20th century. On the reverse, in black pencil in circa mid-20th century handwriting: ”Portico de la / Catedral de As / torga”. This photographic image shows a detail of the central entrance of the western façade of the cathedral of Astorga in León (Spain). The now preserved sculptural and architectural work that gives access to the church was carried out between the late 17th and early 18th centuries by the master architects Francisco de la Lastra Alvear and his son Manuel. Its characteristic three-lobed central arch is flanked with sculptures alluding, among other things, to the Camino de Santiago. The diagonal view of the façade adopted by the person who took this shot, in a northerly direction, is striking, as the church is unusual in that its orientation is not towards the north, like the Christian temples contemporary to this one, but rather towards the northeast.