Church of Our Lady of Fátima

Santa Cruz de Tenerife · Category: Architecture · Subcategory: Religious architecture · Year: 1953 · Authors: Tomás Machado y Méndez Fernández de Lugo

This church was designed in 1953 by architect Tomás Machado y Méndez de Lugo on behalf of the Diocese of Tenerife to erect a parish in the Uruguay neighbourhood, in the upper part of the city.

It is a single-nave Latin cross temple whose plan is articulated in the presbytery, where on both sides the parish house and the sacristy are attached. 

The main façade of the church features the portal, made with a projecting stone lintel supported by pilasters of the same material; from here arises another element topped with a segmented circular arch, where a cross is housed. The ensemble includes a bell tower with a square base that rises on a podium with stone quoins at its corners. At the top there is a second section with a semicircular arch and a projecting cornice.

Access to the church is from a spacious square via a wide natural stone staircase and a door with panels. Once inside, on the right is the baptistery with a central font, accessed through a pine wood grille with turned bars. The temple has a side portal with a semicircular arch, where the keystone touching the projecting cornice stands out and serves as the base for three more arches that allow interior lighting.

The whole ensemble has timid reminiscences of the traditional religious architecture of the islands.

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