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View of St Anthony’s weathervane. Bilbao (Bizkaia). Watercolour by José Ignacio Gutiérrez López-Vázquez.

As a university student, I took an Easter holiday to Andalusia. On my return home I recounted what I had seen: the Mosque of Córdoba, the Alhambra of Granada, the Giralda of Seville.

Upon hearing this I remember my grandmother said to me: “Hain urrin joan zarie Jiralda ikusten Bilbon eukita?” (Why go all the way to Seville when there is a Giralda in Bilbao?). This was the first time I heard about the Giralda of Bilbao, which is, as she pointed out, mounted on top of the tower of St Anthony’s Church. I have ever since tried to gather testimonies which would ratify the information given by my grandmother but is not easy. (more…)