Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela

The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela displays a sprawling Romanesque core hidden behind an intricate, wave-like Baroque facade that dominates the Praza do Obradoiro. Pilgrims arrived here for centuries to reach the tomb of Saint James the Apostle, which remains housed beneath the high altar. When the master builder Mateo finished the Portico da Gloria in eleven eighty-eight, he carved his own likeness into the central pillar, facing the altar in a silent, permanent prayer that still greets every visitor entering the nave.