Francisco Sandoval Gómez

San Miniato al Monte, a Little-Known Marvel in Florence

2026-02-08T00:00:00+00:00

San Miniato al Monte is a Romanesque basilica that has experienced the passage of time from a privileged promontory. This building was a witness to the construction of the enormous dome of Santa Maria del Fiore and the city's general transformation.

It itself changed over time, and although inside we can perceive that characteristic sensation of early Christian basilicas where the Pantocrator mosaic stands out, other ornaments were added.

At the moment (February 2026) the facade and interior pavement cannot be appreciated because the building is immersed in restoration work, although fortunately I have some photos from the first time I visited this place, in July 2018. The combination of green and white marble is characteristic of Florence and is not relegated to quattrocento buildings. It is said that Alberti took references from this facade when designing Santa Maria Novella (around 1460).

The legend about the dedication of this temple is curious. It seems that San Miniato was the first martyr of Florence, around the year 250, who was decapitated for declaring his faith in Christ. However, he took his head in his arms and ran to this hill, where he expressed his desire to be buried. Even more curious is that an identical legend exists about Saint Denis in Montmartre (Paris), although 22 years after San Miniato. In any case, whether we listen to the legend or observe the facade, we will perceive that history tends to repeat itself, and the iconic Romanesque facade of this basilica is full of classical elements, among which I want to highlight the window's pediment.

What I'm saying is no mystery to many, but believe me that for millennials (or “milenaristas”, the Spanish variant used here), who have grown up under the imperative of a creativity that seems to have forgotten tradition, it is not easy to look at History as just another link in the chain. And that is why these walls with visible scaffolding holes, which are so abundant in Italy, are so evocative to me. Scaffolding holes are gaps in the walls where scaffolds were anchored while building or repairing.

And there is the question: we not only build, we also repair, and we will not be the last to do so, because our intervention will have a lasting vocation, but it will not be eternal. There will be someone who must intervene again in the future, with one tool or another, attached or not to a style. What I am clear about is that the reading and interpretation of their predecessors will enrich the work of whoever has the fortune to add one more grain of sand to the history of their architecture.

The Architecture of Pluribus

2025-12-26T00:00:00+00:00

By now, it is undeniable that the photography and settings in Vince Gilligan's series are especially carefully crafted (Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are good examples of this). His latest creation, the intriguing dystopia of Pluribus, offers a panorama inspired by the technological advances of contemporary society that relies on science as a fundamental pillar, which makes possible in the plot the detection of an extraterrestrial signal 600 light-years away or work with the genome in advanced laboratories. Avant-garde or futuristic-tinted architecture usually accompanies plots of this nature to reinforce that sense of palpable novelty. This is observed in films like Passengers, Ex Machina, or in many episodes of Black Mirror.

However, this is not the case in Pluribus, or at least not in the protagonist's domestic environment. Carol Sturka, a writer of romantic and fantasy novels, lives in a housing development on the outskirts of Albuquerque where the dwellings share an aesthetic based on earthy tones that show their wooden structures to the exterior, totally distant from the futuristic concept. Carol lives at the end of the cul-de-sac, the last dwelling in the development, which in some way gives her the necessary singularity of the series protagonist, but which is actually just another house in the suburban development model. Inside, wooden beams supported on corbels with volutes can be observed. The walls, between segmental arches, present light earth tones with attenuated and rounded edges more typical of traditional architecture than the sharp and rectilinear strokes of futuristic forms, and their materials reproduce plasters and stuccoes instead of pure and modern metallic whites.

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Indeed, the protagonist's house is in the style that Americans came to call colonial. Specifically, it resembles Castilian dwellings whose model the Spanish reproduced in America since the late 15th century. This house in New Mexico draws on past models by reproducing its aesthetic elements that identify it. However, the organizational structure and distribution are alien to those traditional models, so in the end this colonial style in Carol's dwelling could be seen as an artifact, a historicist-tinted coating on a contemporary suburban house. </div>

This can be interpreted as a dissonance sought by Gilligan, another touch of originality in this dystopia, or perhaps he is trying to convey to us that the taste for these revivals in certain contexts is precisely a sign of our time and a forecast for the near future. In the following image, a ceiling of round timber joists and shallow plaster vaults can be observed, typical of traditional Spanish architecture. However, the large windows are a clear contribution of our time.

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There is also an intention to show certain pavements applied in spaces that we would not precisely consider the most noble in the house. Thus, in Carol's bathroom, a very interesting encaustic cement tile floor appears. Let's remember that this type of tile emerged in Spain in the mid-19th century and enriched lounges and various rooms with its colorful and varied patterns. </div>

In any case, it is curious that in the second episode of the series, the Calatrava-esque Bilbao airport was chosen as the meeting place for characters of various nationalities. In this case, it does add a futuristic touch that moves away from the domestic and serves as a meeting scenario for a few individuals who have escaped the pluribus. The land from which the architecture reproduced in the Albuquerque dwellings originates, converted into an emblem of modernity. Without a doubt, Gilligan's visual games and great style never cease to amaze me.

The medieval heritage of Caravaca de la Cruz: how a gate and a square tell us about our past

2025-12-12T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The bullring of Caravaca de la Cruz: 100 years of an iconic facade

2025-11-14T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Why covering traditional roofs with polyurethane foam is not a good idea

2025-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Conflict and Transformation: Historic Perspectives of Architectural Heritage in Achuar Communities (Ecuador)

2025-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Dynamics of Transformation in Earthen Architecture: The Case of the Region of Northwest Murcia, Spain

2025-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Approximation to the Environmental Impact of the House of Góngora, Cehegín (Murcia, Spain): an LCA Perspective

2025-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

An example of sustainable construction: the flat vault of 'Building with stone today'

2025-02-20T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The oval and the staircase

2025-01-13T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Caravaca de la Cruz intramuros: streets and the urban wall as medieval heritage

2024-10-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The medieval gate of Caravaca de la Cruz castle: constructive study and intervention criteria

2024-10-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Notre Dame de Paris: a paradigmatic restoration

2024-07-02T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The Templete Bañadero of Caravaca de la Cruz: an unusual monument of a centuries-old rite

2024-04-29T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Study of earth architecture in the Northwest Region of Murcia. The case of Caravaca de la Cruz and Cehegín

2024-02-29T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Casa Museo de San Juan de la Cruz

2024-01-20T00:00:00+00:00

Project: Francisco Sandoval Gómez and Javier Guerrero Brotons. Project management: Javier Guerrero -project architect- and Severiano Arias -construction manager and health and safety coordinator-
This building of humble origin is located in the Plaza del Templete in Caravaca de la Cruz (Murcia) and according to oral tradition was the dwelling that Saint John of the Cross inhabited during his travels to the town for the foundation of the Discalced Carmelite convent. Historical documentation indicates that the mystic saint rented "a small house from some Moriscos" in 1586 near the church of the Purísima Concepción.
The building</h2>
The property is catalogued in the General Urban Development Plan of Caravaca de la Cruz with grade 2: structural conservation. The catalogue sheet indicates the following in observations: "house where Saint John of the Cross lived". It has three floors and is a good example of humble residential architecture that has not undergone significant changes since the 18th century: the wooden paneled carpentry remains, as does the only cantilevered wooden balcony preserved in Caravaca de la Cruz. The following images show the state of the building's interior in 2021:

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The intervention</h2>

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In 2020 the facades and roof underwent restoration, but the interior was in very poor condition. In 2021 the project began to rehabilitate the property and convert it into the Casa Museo de San Juan de la Cruz in Caravaca. The criteria applied were maximum respect for the building's interior and its historical and cultural values, and the use of low environmental impact techniques and materials. </div>
The program established by the Conde Santa Ana de las Torres Foundation, owner of the building, consisted of reproducing the historical and ethnographic values of the property on the ground floor, creating exhibition rooms on the first floor to bring Saint John of the Cross's life and his relationship with Caravaca closer to visitors, and a library and meditation room on the top floor. To carry this out, a new-build volume was erected next to the courtyard to house the elevator, evacuation staircase and restrooms, so that the historic building would have minimal impact from new installations.

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Thus, on the ground floor there is a small office outside the museum route and the rest of the space recreates a humble 16th century dwelling. For this purpose, it was proposed to recover the fireplace and provide appropriate furniture in the main room. In the space where animals were kept, half of the floor was left as earth, unpaved, just as it had remained to this day. The original staircase follows the model of a humble dwelling in the area: located on one side behind a partition wall and made entirely of plaster, a finish that was respected in the project, as a new staircase in the additional volume would be the one leading to the upper floors. </div>

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An opening was made in the wall separating the first from the second bay and in the one separating the second from the third bay an old opening that had been blocked up was utilized so that a clear and unobstructed route could be guaranteed for people with reduced mobility.
A fundamental issue emphasized in the project was respect for the original fabric, with its irregularities and changing geometry, so that corner guards and profiled edges were avoided. The wall finishes on the ground floor are lime mortar and on the upper floors plaster. In short, the aim was to preserve the essence of the property. </div>

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On the other hand, the beams were so deteriorated and with evident signs of rot that they were not salvageable. Therefore, a new floor structure of round timbers and plaster vaults was designed, the traditional technique with which they had been made long ago and which has endured for centuries in humble dwellings. This posed a great challenge, as the construction company had not executed this system and initially resorted to concrete vault blocks. However, advice was provided to the project management to guide the execution of the floor structures according to the project and the planned traditional techniques. </div>
I must thank the technical architect Pedro Antonio Robles, who shared his experience with a formwork system based on reusable PVC on which the plaster for the joist spaces was poured. In this way, not only could the floor structures be made according to traditional techniques, but the construction company also "re-learned" the ancient way of building which is much more sustainable.
In the gallery below you can see three images: 1. The state of the beams / 2. Concrete vault blocks placed by the construction company / 3. PVC formwork already in place after removing the concrete vault blocks / 4. Floor structure with plaster already poured, note the PVC formwork in the background where plaster has not yet been poured. All images are my own. You can appreciate between photos 2 and 3 the different curvature of one solution and the other, that is, with the concrete vault blocks the floor structure would have resulted in a greater depth and, therefore, greater weight.

As for the new-build volume, it was designed with simplicity to be respectful of the historic building. A new facade needed to be created on the Cuesta de la Cruz between party walls: on one side, the historic dwelling, on the other, a contemporary residential building of much greater height. A white facade was designed based on lime mortar that would be neutral in its environment, without any openings as the interior services, which opened onto the courtyard, did not require them. The triple-row tile cornice of the historic building was reproduced to provide compositional unity, so that the new volume differs from the pre-existing one in the facade color but facilitates understanding of the whole as a unit through the upper finish. This is of great importance as the handmade brick present in many cornices restored in recent decades is not documented in any building prior to the 18th century, while humble constructions up to the 20th century in the area were mostly made only with curved tiles. No additional element or ornament was added to the facade panel so that the Foundation itself has the opportunity in the future to treat it according to its needs and can place any signage identifying the Casa Museo de San Juan de la Cruz without affecting the walls of the historic house.


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More information</h2>

Project presentation</a></li>
Association of Saint John of the Cross and Saint Teresa in Caravaca</a></li> </ul>

Earth construction: a heritage with future prospects

2024-01-11T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Adaptation of the historic Mercantile Circle building

2023-11-20T00:00:00+00:00

This building is located next to the Caravaca de la Cruz town hall, in Plaza del Arco. Until the mid-19th century it was the Governors' House and later the Artistic Circle was established there. In 2023, on the occasion of the first centenary of the foundation of the local Mercantile Circle, the basic project for adapting the property to the new reality was presented. Currently, the members of the Mercantile Circle share the building with the festive group Reales Halcones Negros del Desierto, participants in the city's Moors and Christians festivities.
The building</h2>
The property is listed in the General Urban Planning Plan of Caravaca de la Cruz with grade 2: structural conservation. Notable features include the imperial staircase accessed through a triple classical arcade and the iconic hall of mirrors. The building combines traditional wooden floor structures with load-bearing walls and cast iron columns. In the 1990s it underwent some unfortunate interventions whose impact the 2023 planned intervention aims to minimize.
The intervention</h2>
First, a preliminary study of the building was drafted setting out a programme of six interventions whose objective is to update the property to meet current safety and accessibility needs and requirements in such a way that preserves its cultural value. The basic project develops the first action which consists of providing the building with an elevator, reorganizing the spaces to enhance its most relevant historical and artistic elements, and providing use to the second floor through the design of a games and reading room.
Among the main challenges of the project were generating two celebration halls on the first floor that would reconcile the diversity of events that the property might host and respond to the intergenerational nature of its users, or creating restrooms for people with reduced mobility in an intricate space that currently lacks them.

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Urbi et Orbi: writings about the city

2023-10-19T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Soap-finished gypsum: approach to a nearly extinct technique

2023-10-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The Círculo Mercantil of Caravaca turns 100

2023-08-02T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

How our towns have changed: a brief journey from the nineties to today

2023-07-05T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Repair or replace

2022-12-31T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The street and ritual in Caravaca Festivals

2022-04-29T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Meticulous in his work and excellent in the historical study of buildings

2022-03-13T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Our great threat

2022-01-05T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

One hundred years since the start of Gran Vía works in Caravaca

2021-11-12T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Water in the structure of the city: irrigation channels and urban transformations in Caravaca de la Cruz

2021-05-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

A brief history of Caravaca through the street of writer Gregorio Javier

2021-04-14T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The architectural heritage on the Red List in the Northwest and Río Mula regions

2020-11-26T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

A truncated tower in Caravaca castle and the coat of arms of Master Suárez de Figueroa

2020-11-12T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Demographic dynamics in the inter-provincial node of the southeast Iberian Peninsula: initiatives and action proposals

2020-10-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Rehabilitation of Casa de la Virgen in Caravaca de la Cruz

2020-10-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The unreachable dome

2020-08-27T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Peculiar elements in the architecture of the Northwest region

2020-07-22T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

3D modeling applied to cultural heritage

2020-05-25T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The Town Hall of Caravaca de la Cruz: a Baroque work as genesis of Plaza del Arco

2020-04-21T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The house: case of life and happiness machine

2020-04-07T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Perspectives on water. Water architecture and territory in the modern era

2020-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The influence of water on the urban and architectural morphology of Caravaca de la Cruz (Region of Murcia, southeast Spain)

2019-12-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Living in the old town

2019-11-28T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The disappeared 1920s architecture in Caravaca

2019-10-24T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Cold drop: cause and effect on urbanized areas

2019-09-25T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Bioclimatic strategies in urbanism: the Coso garden

2019-07-24T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Bells and the Festival

2019-04-29T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Defensive architecture: transformation and evolution of castles

2019-04-17T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The Ermita del Santo in Caravaca

2019-03-28T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Challenges for the 21st century city

2019-01-24T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Dry stone construction, world heritage

2018-12-12T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Mills and Fulling mills in Caravaca: the influence of water on architecture

2018-11-16T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The castle looked to Mula as sustainer of its privileges, now Mula looks to its castle

2018-10-05T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The Northwest and Río Mula region has three old towns declared Historic-Artistic Sites

2018-09-13T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Line and focus in Baroque urbanism: Murcia at the Venice Biennale

2018-08-09T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The architecture of hermitages: la Encarnación in Caravaca

2018-07-05T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Facades in traditional architecture: the case of la Encomienda

2018-06-03T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The decontextualization of the city

2018-05-14T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The mystery of acoustics shared by Caravaca and New York

2018-04-05T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Characteristics of Cold Air Pools (CAPs) in the interior southeast of the Iberian Peninsula

2018-02-01T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The search for the genuine

2017-11-16T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

About urban barriers

2017-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The Renaissance layout in Caravaca castle

2017-09-09T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

The EUROPAN that Caravaca won

2017-07-18T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Threatened heritage in Caravaca

2017-06-24T00:00:00+00:00

Full content is available at the external link.

Francisco Sandoval Gómez

San Miniato al Monte, a Little-Known Marvel in Florence

The Architecture of Pluribus

The medieval heritage of Caravaca de la Cruz: how a gate and a square tell us about our past

The bullring of Caravaca de la Cruz: 100 years of an iconic facade

Why covering traditional roofs with polyurethane foam is not a good idea

Conflict and Transformation: Historic Perspectives of Architectural Heritage in Achuar Communities (Ecuador)

Dynamics of Transformation in Earthen Architecture: The Case of the Region of Northwest Murcia, Spain

Approximation to the Environmental Impact of the House of Góngora, Cehegín (Murcia, Spain): an LCA Perspective

An example of sustainable construction: the flat vault of 'Building with stone today'

The oval and the staircase

Caravaca de la Cruz intramuros: streets and the urban wall as medieval heritage

The medieval gate of Caravaca de la Cruz castle: constructive study and intervention criteria

Notre Dame de Paris: a paradigmatic restoration

The Templete Bañadero of Caravaca de la Cruz: an unusual monument of a centuries-old rite

Study of earth architecture in the Northwest Region of Murcia. The case of Caravaca de la Cruz and Cehegín

Casa Museo de San Juan de la Cruz

More information</h2> Project presentation</a></li> Association of Saint John of the Cross and Saint Teresa in Caravaca</a></li> </ul>

Earth construction: a heritage with future prospects

Adaptation of the historic Mercantile Circle building

Urbi et Orbi: writings about the city

Soap-finished gypsum: approach to a nearly extinct technique

The Círculo Mercantil of Caravaca turns 100

How our towns have changed: a brief journey from the nineties to today

Repair or replace

The street and ritual in Caravaca Festivals

Meticulous in his work and excellent in the historical study of buildings

Our great threat

One hundred years since the start of Gran Vía works in Caravaca

Water in the structure of the city: irrigation channels and urban transformations in Caravaca de la Cruz

A brief history of Caravaca through the street of writer Gregorio Javier

The architectural heritage on the Red List in the Northwest and Río Mula regions

A truncated tower in Caravaca castle and the coat of arms of Master Suárez de Figueroa

Demographic dynamics in the inter-provincial node of the southeast Iberian Peninsula: initiatives and action proposals

Rehabilitation of Casa de la Virgen in Caravaca de la Cruz

The unreachable dome

Peculiar elements in the architecture of the Northwest region

3D modeling applied to cultural heritage

The Town Hall of Caravaca de la Cruz: a Baroque work as genesis of Plaza del Arco

The house: case of life and happiness machine

Perspectives on water. Water architecture and territory in the modern era

The influence of water on the urban and architectural morphology of Caravaca de la Cruz (Region of Murcia, southeast Spain)

Living in the old town

The disappeared 1920s architecture in Caravaca

Cold drop: cause and effect on urbanized areas

Bioclimatic strategies in urbanism: the Coso garden

Bells and the Festival

Defensive architecture: transformation and evolution of castles

The Ermita del Santo in Caravaca

Challenges for the 21st century city

Dry stone construction, world heritage

Mills and Fulling mills in Caravaca: the influence of water on architecture

The castle looked to Mula as sustainer of its privileges, now Mula looks to its castle

The Northwest and Río Mula region has three old towns declared Historic-Artistic Sites

Line and focus in Baroque urbanism: Murcia at the Venice Biennale

The architecture of hermitages: la Encarnación in Caravaca

Facades in traditional architecture: the case of la Encomienda

The decontextualization of the city

The mystery of acoustics shared by Caravaca and New York

Characteristics of Cold Air Pools (CAPs) in the interior southeast of the Iberian Peninsula

The search for the genuine

About urban barriers

The Renaissance layout in Caravaca castle

The EUROPAN that Caravaca won

Threatened heritage in Caravaca

More information</h2>

Project presentation</a></li>
Association of Saint John of the Cross and Saint Teresa in Caravaca</a></li> </ul>