Convento e Iglesia de San Juan de la Penitencia, Orihuela

This convent includes a shop selling sweets and pastries made by the nuns

The church and  convent of Saint John -  Clarissas nuns ( the poor Clares)
This convent is the home of the Clarissas nuns and was built outside of the city walls at the end of the fifteenth century although the structure which we see today was altered and rebuilt several times during the course of its history which echoed the successive bouts of plague which decimated the population, earthquakes, and the political ebbs and flows which affected the history of the city of Orihuela.( see History of Orihuela)

The foundation of a religious order on this site dates back to 1490 and the convent was originally founded by the Franciscans.

This convent is notable for the curved structure of the building, which was built backing on to a water irrigation route and followed the shape of the irrigation channel. The convent sat alone in farmlands outside of the main walls of the City, and the urban structure we see today was gradually built up around the original convent building which is one of the highest constructions using this form of building in Spain.

The Baroque church was constructed during the second half of the eighteenth century and substitutes the second building which was built by Agustín Bernaldino at the end of the 16th century.

It’s a simple, but beautiful church, decorated in a blue and white porcelain style, topped with a barrel vault ceiling and semicircular dome, decorated with paintings by architect and  artist Antonio  de Villanueva. ( Born Lorca 1714, died Valencia 1785). He was the son of sculptor Laureano Villanueva from Orihuela, who was working in Lorca when Antonio was born, but then returned to Orihuela where Antonio received a good education, studying not only painting and drawing, but also philosophy, grammar, Italian and French. His first known works are documented in 1747 and can still be seen in the Ayuntamiento of Elche, an Asunción and San Agatángelo. He went on to undertake a number of important commissions in Orihuela including the façade of the Iglesia of Santas Justa y Rufina and other works in the Iglesia de Santiago. In 1759 he entered the order of the Franciscans, and was ordained as a priest in Valencia where he continued to dedicate himself to the production of religious works and teach drawing.

The majority of the frescos in this church were produced by Villanueva and he is also the author of  the canvases in the presbytery undertaken in 1780.

Other important works in the church include the retablo mayor, or main alterpiece, designed in neoclassical style in marble, crowned by the image of San Juan Bautista by Jose Esteve Bonet.

Other important pieces on the left hand wall include the ecstasy of San Antionio de Padua, the "éxtasis de San Antonio de Padua", attributed to Antonio Palomino, which was undertaken at the beginning of the eighteenth century and a sculpture of Francis of Asissi "San Francisco de Asís" by Murcian Baroque sculptor, Francisco Salzillo. This is behind glass and is difficult to see clearly as it is also quite high off the ground.  There is also a reclining Christ attributed to Salzillo, but more likely from his school as it lacks the fine touch of the master himself and Cristo de Zalamea, a work by Nicolás de Bussy

The monastery itself contains a Dolorosa by Francisco Salzillo and other works by Esteve Bonet, Antonio Villanueva, and Antonio Palomino, but these are not on public display.

One of the most interesting sculptures is the small figure of the Virgen de la Esperanza by an unknown hand which is positioned in front of the main altar during advent and the celebrations of the Esperanza. This is one of only two known statues in Spain to show the Virgen in a condition of pregnancy, the presence of the Son of God in her swollen belly indicated by the sunburst on her stomach.

Another feature which visitors may find interesting is the presence of fretwork grilles between the open galleries of the church and the convent on the other side, a means by which the sisters living in the convent can attend the services, which are also open to the public, without being seen.

Cakes and pastries in the convent.
The main form of income for nuns living in the convent is the manufacture and sale of a variety of mouthwatering traditional “dulces” or sweets, using traditional recipes passed from one convent to another, which are sold in a shop open to the public throughout the year on the front of the building.

In Spanish culture, those who wished to thank a neighbour for an act of kindness, or pay for the services of a friend without wishing to offend, would buy sweets from the convents, supporting the religious orders as well as giving a gift which was highly prized, sweets of this nature a luxury item in a mainly agricultural community where wages were low and indulgences few and far between.

These sweets made by the nuns are laborious to prepare, and involve a great deal of manual labour: before mechanisation delivered almonds ready ground into a malleable dust, almonds had to be shelled, blanched, roasted and ground before the processes to make them into sweets could even begin, jams boiled and bottled, and sugar ground for dusting the finished product, labour intensive work which required time and patience.

Many of the recipes are based around almonds, and this particular convent is famous for its “Tarta de Santa Clara”.

This delicious tart is made almost entirely from almonds, yet is sweet and light as well as crunchy. This tart is only made by special order as it takes 3 days of laborious preparation to prepare, but when surplus is on sale, it can be bought in large slices which represent a quarter of a tart. It works out at around 6 euros a wedge as it’s almost entirely made from ground almonds, but only a thin sliver is required and it is superb accompanied with a glass of sweet Jumilla “vino dulce” or Moscatel. Moscatel is ridiculously cheap, and is available in most supermarkets and bodegas at around 2 euros a bottle, the perfect partner to these sweet treats which are consumed during  festivals, and particularly at Christmas.

There are two convents which are open throughout the year in Orihuela, selling hand made sweets and jams, this one which mainly sells marzipan pieces and the Convento de la Trinidad ( click Convento de la Trinidad) , which ash a wider range of biscuit based sweets, both of which are open throughout the year.

Orihuela tourist office run special convent sampling routes just before Christmas, when purchasing these sweets is a mandatory part of Christmas for every Orihuela resident, but will also be happy to help groups arrange visits as part of cultural tours of the city.

Monasterio de San Juan de la Penitencia (Hermanas Clarisas).
Location: Calle Antonio Pinies
Click for map, Calle Antonio Pinies

Shop opening hours:
Monday to Friday 9am to 1pm and 3.30pm to 7pm
Saturday and Sunday 4pm to 7pm

Virgen de la Asunción, 14th and 15th August.
The ascension of the Virgen Mary, is commemorated throughout Spain in the festivity of the Virgen del Asunción, and in this particular nunnery there is a unique tradition during which a peculiar figure of the Virgen is brought out from the interior of the convent and put on display in front of the main altar.
The authorship of the piece is unknown, two differing opinions placing it either at the end of the 17th or beginning of the 18th centuries, and represents the Virgen lying in a sleeping position. The nuns bring it out just for this one occasion, laying the Virgen on a bed of fabric so that she can be seen by the townspeople and visitors to the convent. The figure is little known, even within Orihuela, as the dates of the festivity co-incide with the August holidays, for which reason this fiesta is often called the “Virgen de Agosto.”