From Solomon’s temple to shining reliquary. Vision and ekphrasis of the Cathedral of Jaén

Abstract

The image of the Cathedral of Jaén transmitted to us by artistic literature has enriched the vision and interpretation of the Temple over the centuries. The most unique of all sources, exponent of Baroque imagery, is the one that relates it to the Temple of Jerusalem. The architectural ekphrasis of the Cathedral of Jaén commences in the 17th century with the panegyric description by Juan Núñez Sotomayor, who explains the details of the structure and the building by means of precise allusions to the great solomonic work. Far from reaching its climax with the suggestive Baroque rhetoric, the repertoire of images of the major Jaen’s temple continues and heightens in unique exercises of ekphrasis until the present century.