Ecclesiastical Prison (18th Century)
Former canonical penitentiary building in which the lack of faith in the City of Coria was expiated.
The city’s Ecclesiastic Prison (Cárcel Eclesiástica) was founded by Juan José García Álvaro (1750- 1783), the magnanimous Bishop of the Diocese of Coria, in 1760, possibly rebuilt over other previous ecclesiastical prisons. On its entrance, formed by an enormous semi-circular arch boasting fine masonry, the coat of arms of the patron mentions the date of its construction. The building is located on the narrow street known as Calle Oscura and is divided into two floors that are whitewashed on the outside, where the use of stones is focussed exclusively on pilasters, corners, openings, entablature and the entrance.
The whitewashed façade, which has now been significantly transformed, still retains some vestiges that partly reveal the 18th-century baroque architecture of the building. This attribute can be observed through its remarkable entablature set back at one end where it rests on a uniform pilaster of granite ashlar masonry, or the outstanding scroll-buttresses and corbels that support this baroque structure, in addition to its former exclusive role, with the huge lattice windows that have survived to this day.