The market in San Miguel de Madrid – A place of worship

It’s funny over time. Who would tell the locals that where now enjoy good servings of pure, traditional tapas and some culinary delicacies, it was centuries ago, the birthplace and shrine of one of the greatest writers that has had the Spanish language and universal, not to mention is the sole survivor of an architectural style born in Paris and that modernity was in charge of play by European countries. This is the Mercado de San Miguel, in the most traditional heart of Madrid, just a few meters from the Plaza Mayor.

Photography by Miguel. (respenda)

Wherever we see, the market is located on what was once the parish church of San Miguel de Octo. And in this temple, of which only is recorded in the courts of Madrid of 1202, was baptized in 1562 Félix Lope de Vega, the illustrious author of Fuenteovejuna or El Perro del Hortelano. Worship center would be to little more than a century after a devastating fire as battered state would leave the temple and its surroundings. So much so that the King José I Bonaparte, in person, was the one who ordered its demolition and who made available to dealers this central site.

A market with nearly a hundred years of history:

Commercial activity in the historic center of Madrid grew with the growth rhythmic lived capital. Late in the nineteenth century, the site of San Miguel was becoming a hotbed of perishable merchandise of a size such that the authorities decided to order the construction and supply market. There were two projects: the first initiated by Joachim Henri in 1835 that consisted basically of a housing, and the second, Alfonso Díez Dubé and ended in 1916, which gave the final appearance is now widely acknowledged.

Photography by Wolfiewolf

The uniqueness of this building is that strictly follows the model that was born from the central markets of Paris, Les Halles. These ships, built just begun the nineteenth, were the model for organizing the markets of much of Europe: craft rectangular, symmetrically divided along the lines of a grid. The roof, in most cases, glass to let in natural light and space positions, distributed through the strategic use of iron and the proliferation of thin columns that were responsible for sharing the burden of roof strength.

El Mercado de San Miguel, restored in 1999, is today the only example of Parisian market in Madrid, following the disappearance of barley and Mostenses. Weak to compete with supermarkets and hypermarkets especially after the temporary stop that led to its restoration, social agents prompted the initiative by the Grand Gourmet San Miguel by the market stalls that have specialized in offering high quality products from season and they face the challenge of giving new life to Spanish cuisine and meet the most demanding palates. Thus, through centuries, San Miguel has carved a niche in the Madrid and leisure agency has recovered its «status» of a place of worship but now it is the cult of gastronomy.

Photography by garybembridge

El Mercado de San Miguel is in the Plaza San Miguel de Madrid, and is open from Sunday to Wednesday between 10 and 22h, and from Thursday to Saturday from 10 until 2 o’clock.

Enjoy the journey!