In 1511, five years after the practical completion of the building, the dome gave way. It was re-erected by Juan Gil de Hontañon, an architect who subsequently designed the new Cathedral of Salamanca (1513). The original architects are supposed to have been of German nationality.[B] Earthquake shocks endangered a part of the structure at a later date, and Casanova, who restored the Giralda Tower, superintended the renovation, which was begun in 1882. Six years after Casanova's restoration, the dome again collapsed, and from that time until to-day the work of repair has proceeded.
Théophile Gautier, writing of this splendid pile, states:
'The most extravagant and most monstrously prodigious Hindoo pagodas are not to be mentioned in the same century as the Cathedral of Seville. It is a mountain scooped out, a valley turned topsy-turvy; Notre Dame at Paris might walk erect in the middle nave, which is of frightful height; pillars as large round as towers, and which appear so slender that they make you shudder, rise out of the ground or descend from the vaulted roof, like stalactites in a giant's grotto.'
In Caveda's description of the Cathedral, we read: 'The general effect is truly majestic. The open-work parapets which crown the roofs; the graceful lanterns of the eight winding stairs that ascend in the corners to the vaults and galleries; the flying buttresses that spring lightly from aisle to nave, as the jets of a cascade from cliff to cliff; the slender pinnacles that cap them, the proportions of the arms of the transept and of the buttresses supporting the side walls; the large pointed windows that open between them, one above another, just as the aisles and chapels to which they belong rise over each other; the pointed portals and entrances—all these combine in an almost miraculous manner, although these are lacking the wealth of detail, the airy grace, and the delicate elegance that characterise the cathedrals of León and Burgos.'
It was during the long and exhausting endeavours of the Castilian Kings to expel the Moors from Spain, that gold and treasure was paid into the coffers of the Chapter for the cost of erecting the marvellous Cathedral of Seville. Bishops, deans and clergy forfeited one half of their stipends to meet the heavy charges of architects, artists, stained glass designers, masons, carvers, and innumerable craftsmen and labourers. An army of artists and mechanics was employed upon the vast work. During the century of construction, the Catholic kings who resided in the Alcázar, showed great interest in the undertaking, while the noble families subscribed liberally towards the cost, and the poor gave of their slender store of pesetas.
The exterior of the Cathedral is a type of the finest Spanish Gothic architecture, though the incorporated Giralda Tower is distinctly Morisco, and much older in style. Within the consecrated precincts, we may see traces of the Mudéjar handicraftsmen amid early Gothic and Renaissance architectural details.
The Cathedral consecrated ground contains within its confines the Moorish Patio de los Naranjas, the high minaret, the Columbus Library, offices of the Chapter, and the Church of the Sagrario. There are nine doors to the Cathedral proper, and a gateway with doors, leading to the Patio de los Naranjas, or Court of the Oranges.
THE EXTERIOR OF THE CATHEDRAL.
From the Calle del Gran Capitan, on the west side of the Cathedral, one may gain a conception of the extent and the magnificence of the building. It is best to begin our inspection of the doors from this side. Here we shall find three entrances, or puertas. The chief door is in the centre. It is elaborately decorated, and is in fine preservation. Thirty-two figures stand in niches. Over the door is a beautiful relief of the Assumption by Ricardo Bellver.