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  This painting, which shows the monks of La Cartuja de Cazalla, hangs today in the Museo Bellas Artes in Seville. It is by the Spanish old master Francisco de Zurbarán, who painted it in his twenties when he was living in the neighbouring village of Llerena.
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  Old map
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  La Cartuja
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  The Chapel

Sanctuary on the Silver Road

La Cartuja Guesthouse is a hotel with a history few can rival.

The Carthusian monastery — in Spanish, “La Cartuja” — of Cazalla de la Sierra is built on a natural plateau surrounded by walls and a 30 metre cliff facing east. It has one of the most beautiful views of the Sierra Morena, especially at sunrise. In the centre of this plateau a natural spring rises that never runs dry.

According to archaeological studies, this place has served as a religious site through the millennia. It was used even before the Phoenicians opened the “Ruta de la Plata” (the 'Silver Road').

In the middle of the 8th century, Muslims from north Africa came to this area to work in the nearby mines of 'Cerro del Hierro', prospecting for iron ore. Their leader chose this place to build a Mosque, his home, and olive oil and wheat mills. Traces of all these buildings remain today.

Later on, when the Christian kings conquered the Moors in Southern Spain, the Mosque was closed and the place was used as a hunting lodge for the kings and a guest-house for the pilgrims who travelled along the Silver Road on their way to Santiago de Compostela.

In 1418, Fra. Lope de Olmedo founded a Jeronimus Monastery, in brotherhood with the monastery of San Isidoro del Campo near Seville. These monks had the audacity to write and publish a bible, a sin quickly punished by the Inquisition with the enforced closure of both monasteries. A few years later, in 1476, the place became a Carthusian Monastery. The monks, following tradition, kept the guest-house open for the public next to the outdoor chapel known as “Capilla de Peregrino” — (the 'Pilgrims Chapel').

In the nineteenth century, with the unfortunate Mendizabal law, a period of decline began for all Spanish monasteries. The Cartuja was abandoned and fell into disrepair. Local farmers used its splendid but decaying buildings as barns and stables.

A Monastery for the 21st Century

In 1977, the present owner Carmen Ladrón de Guevara y Bracho visited the site and knew immediately she had found her mission. Overcoming many obstacles and difficulties, she has managed the renovation of this historic site, and its conversion into a Centre of Contemporary Art and Culture. The authorities have now officially declared the Cartuja a National Monument, and Carmen Ladrón de Guevara has obtained international recognition of her work. In 1986 she was awarded the Europa Nostra Award for the preservation European heritage, and in 1993 she received the Rolex Award in recognition of her entrepreneurial spirit.

Artists and thinkers are welcomed, taking the place of the monks, creating works of art, which is the spiritual food in these modern days. The rooms of the Guesthouse are decorated with works by visiting artists. Painters, sculptors and musicians can sometimes offer their art in exchange for their stay. The Centre of Contemporary Culture includes an art gallery with paintings by the resident artists, many of which can be acquired by our visitors, and a permanent collection of Spanish and Latin American art.

La Cartuja de Cazalla 2011