The Exterior of La Sagrada Familia

Frontal Exterior View of La Sagrada Familia: La Sagrada Familia is designed to include 18 towers, 12 shorter ones on the facades and 6 tallers one in the center. The facades each hold a special symbolism, for example the facade of glory. Each one of the 12 shorter towers represents an Apostle. The six taller towers are arranged in a pyramide, which symbolizes their hierarchy. The tallest tower, located above the cross, represents Jesus Christ. Four slimmer towers surround it and represent the Evangelists and their Gospels. The sixth taller tower represents the Virgin Mary. The image below shows the frontal view of La Sagrada Familia and many of the towers.

image: "Sagrada Familia ★★★." Sagrada Familia, Barcelona. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2016.

Zoomed in Frontal View of La Sagrada Familia: The image below shows a zoomed in photo of the frontal exterior. You can begin to see the incredible details of the towers and their facades.

image: "Nativity Facade - La Sagrada Familia." Flickr. Yahoo!, n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2016.

Nativity Facade: the image below shows the most popular facade, the Nativity Facade. In this photo you can begin to study the building materials used. The stone used for the towers in this facade is sandstone from Montjuïc, Barcelona. However, the stone was scarce, as the Montjuïc quarries were closed several years ago and the stone can only now be obtained from demolished buildings. Therefore, other sandstones and granite were used for some parts of the windows, towers, and roofs. Reinforced concrete was used for pinnacles on this facade. Interestingly, Gaudi left instructions of how to apply this concrete.

image: "The Nativity Facade of La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain." Steves Genealogy Blog. N.p., 20 Aug. 2011. Web. 03 Feb. 2016.

text: "Techniques and Materials." Basilica De La Sagrada Familia. Junta Constructora Del Temple Expiatori De La Sagrada Família, n.d. Web. 3 Feb. 2016.

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