Spanish bishops’ conference signs agreement with Ministry of Culture to conserve cathedrals

Madrid, Spain, Nov 22, 2006 / 22:00 pm

The president of the Spanish Bishops’ Cultural Heritage Committee, Bishop Juan Jose Asenjo of Cordoba, signed an agreement this week with the government’s Minister of Culture, Carmen Calvo, that will ensure the preservation of the country’s historic cathedrals.

The agreement lays out a plan for conserving the more than 40 cathedrals throughout Spain, some of which will need extensive restoration work in the next two years.

The agreement lays out a plan for 2007 and will be in effect for two years. Priority will be given to those cathedrals that have not been renovated in recent years and that have structural problems.  

The Ministry of Culture says it will commit some $11.5 million in 2007 for cathedral maintenance and restoration.

The cathedrals slated for restoration work in 2007 include the Cathedral of San Isidro in Madrid, and cathedrals in Barcelona, Cordoba, Malaga, and Pamplona, among others.