San Ginés Church : The hidden details
One of the most famous churches in all of Madrid is with no doubt San Ginés.
Located on Calle Arenal and just a stone’s throw from from Puerta del Sol, it is a place that locals have always known and that foreigners identify early on. In addition, one should not underestimate the tranquility that comes with entering a church like this on a busy weekend on such a commercial and touristy street in old Madrid. The history of the church, its art, its architecture, its paintings and its folklore are a thing on their own. But what we want to tell you today can be done without entering the building. Let’s start with some interesting facts.
One of them would be this symbol that we leave here below. It is located on the smallest door on the side of the church that faces Bordadores Street, under the frame that says “Asegurada de incendios.” Do you know what it is?
Well, it is a hieroglyph that was understood without having to read. It is an S with a nail pierced through it. In other words, an S and a nail is a… slave. In Spanish, the letter “s” is “ese”, and a nail is “clavo”. If we put that together “esclavo”, it means slave. Well, this symbol of the slave appears in many churches, also in Madrid, for example in the church of San Nicolás or the Olivar. Another complementary explanation is that it meant “without rights” in Latin, (sine iure), which makes sense as well with the letter S and the letter I, S+I. In the time of Habsburgs, slaves and forced laborers were marked with this symbol on their cheeks or necks, especially those who tried to escape. This is described in works by Cervantes or Tirso de Molina. This door leads to the chapel of Cristo de la Redención. The symbol continues to be used by various religious congregations that consider themselves, in a figurative sense, slaves of Christ or the Virgin.
The church also has other picturesque curiosities that are worth knowing. For example, its bell ringing is one of the most recognizable in old Madrid, and undoubtedly a key tradition in Spanish culture. Along with San Pedro el Viejo and San Nicolás, its bells announce weddings or other commemorations. For example, every March 11, the 2004 Atocha terrorists attacks are remembered at 9 in the morning with the solemn ringing. We hope they don’t have to ring the alarm!
We cannot go without mentioning the San Ginés par excellence: the chocolate shop. Traditionally, people went there for churros after every mass, and now it is a key point for tourism in Madrid. The contrast in the hustle and bustle between the church and the churro shop is clear, giving us a clear example of the difference and at the same time the coexistence of the introspective and the mundane.
And the best thing about the chocolate shop? It opens 24 hours, so if you ever go there at 7 or 8 in the morning, you will find a wonderful mix of early-rising retirees and party-goers who are killing time for the metro or to cool off the night fumes.
There is much more to the church and churros, so stay tuned to the blog because we will come back to some of these topics. If you want to know more interesting facts about Madrid, do not hesitate to join one of our guided tours of Madrid. We have more than one Free Tour Madrid that goes around this area and/or in our Private Tour Madrid .
