Cathedral Basilica of Salvador, Salvador

Cathedral Basilica of Salvador, Salvador (must see)

The Cathedral Basilica of Salvador, officially dedicated to the Transfiguration of Christ and named Primatial Cathedral Basilica of the Transfiguration of the Lord, is the seat of the archbishop of Salvador. The cathedral has been listed as a historic structure by the National Institute of Historic and Artistic Heritage since 1938.

The Cathedral Basilica of Salvador was originally built as part of a Jesuit monastic and educational complex. The first church was constructed in 1590. When the Dutch entered Salvador in 1624, the church was stripped of its silverwork and used as a warehouse.

The reconstruction of the complex was finished in 1654 after the Portuguese regained control of the city. It was built closely resemble the Jesuit Church of Coimbra in Portugal, carried out through the Mannerist architectural style and building the structure with Lioz stone sourced from Portugal.

Inside, the cathedral is a one-aisled church of rectangular shape, without transept, and with a very shallow main chapel. The side walls have a series of lateral chapels decorated with altarpieces. The chapels illustrate altarpiece art from the late 16th through the mid-18th centuries, all decorated with sculptures and paintings. The sacristy cabinet dates to the 17th century and showcase the life of Jesus in paintings on copper panels.

Much of the complex burned in 1905, leaving only the church behind. It was reconstructed in 1933 and then gained protected status. The cathedral is open to the general public for tours and worship.

Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Salvador. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "GPSmyCity: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.

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Cathedral Basilica of Salvador on Map

Sight Name: Cathedral Basilica of Salvador
Sight Location: Salvador, Brazil (See walking tours in Salvador)
Sight Type: Religious
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:

Walking Tours in Salvador, Brazil

Create Your Own Walk in Salvador

Create Your Own Walk in Salvador

Creating your own self-guided walk in Salvador is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
Salvador's Historical Churches Tour

Salvador's Historical Churches Tour

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Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.1 Km or 1.3 Miles
Salvador Introduction Walking Tour

Salvador Introduction Walking Tour

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Due to its location, early Europeans turned Salvador into an important trade route for slavery. Of the nearly 5 million enslaved people who were imported to Brazil, about 1.3 million were...  view more

Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.6 Km or 1 Miles