Subbetica
Church of St John the Baptist and the former Hospital of St John of God
In 1565, the Hospitaller Order arrived in Lucena to found a convent-hospital, but by the first half of the 18th century, the complex had fallen into a state of significant disrepair and ruin. Consequently, in 1747, plans were drawn up for a new hospital and church, when the Order’s General, Fray Alonso de Jesús Ortega of Lucena, commissioned the artists who had built the basilica and hospital of San Juan de Dios in Granada to carry out the work. The plans for the hospital and the church were drawn up by José de Bada y Navajas, a native of Lucena, and the works were supervised by Fray Francisco Álvarez. The entrance is framed by a superb portal of polychrome marble from the region, crafted by the Pino Ascanio brothers, prestigious local stonemasons of the mid-18th century. The church has a single nave with a barrel vault featuring lunettes, culminating in a dome decorated with plasterwork. The high altar is presided over by a beautiful altarpiece created by Francisco José Guerrero, who also produced five other smaller altarpieces. The hospital, now a care home, is arranged around a large central courtyard, whose low cloister, with arches resting on pillars, is beautifully decorated with Manises tiles dating from the same period as the building, which was inaugurated in 1754.