THE LIFE OF THE VIRGIN ALTARPIECE

SURROUNDINGS 

The National Sculpture Museum of Valladolid has its headquarters in several historic buildings  which include the Renaissance-style stone mansions called "Villena" and the building known as "The Sun", or alternatively, "the Count of Gondomar building" comprising the Church of  Saint Benedict the Elder (San Benito el Viejo). Of all the buildings, however, the Chapel and the Colegio San Gregorio, a foundation dedicated to training Dominican friars founded by Fray Alonso de Burgos, the Confessor of queen Isabella I of Castile, are of particular interest. Fray Alonso later went on to hold Chairs in Cordoba, Cuenca and Palencia. He also held the post of Grand Chancellor of Castile.

In this exceptional group of Castilian late-Gothic style architecture, special mention must be made of the cloister that has two floors, the upper of which was richly ornamented - work on building the cloister was completed around 1492 - and a bannered portico dated in 1499 on which the portico's founder commissioned a scene in which he was seen making a gift of it to Saints Gregory and Paul (San Gregorio and San Pablo) under a royal coat of arms covered in exuberant decoration.