A Mosque in Valencia: The chapel of Grupo Benéfico San Francisco Javier. A. Gómez Davó

Abstract

In Valencia there was a large building complex, the Grupo Benéfico San Francisco Javier in the district of Campanar, built in Spanish neo-colonial style, now disappeared. Among many of its endowments was a chapel designed in Maghrebi style (1941), which, of the entire ensemble, is the only construction currently left standing. The article, written with unpublished material, reveals the building and analyses the author, the Valencian architect Antonio Gómez Davó, to verify whether or not he acted with archaeological rigor in its design. For this, its building elements and parameters have been compared with other existing religious buildings in North Africa. This analysis shows efficiency in the floor plan and other parameters, for its use as a Catholic church. There is, on the other hand, a Maghrebi archaeological project rigor; in terms of its construction system, its forms and its decoration. We must also highlight the wise decision of including in the chapel a missing Spanish historical architectural element, such as the roof of the convent of San Juan de la Penitencia de Toledo. This non-Islamic element was skillfully integrated into the Maghreb environment of the Campanar chapel.

Keywords

• mezquita Valencia
• Grupo Benéfico San Francisco Javier
• Antonio Gómez Davó
• arquitectura magrebí
• eclecticismo islámico