The challenge
La Sagrada Familia is a World Heritage Site and Barcelona’s most popular tourist destination, attracting over three million visitors a year. The masterwork of architect Antonio Gaudí, work commenced on 19th March 1882 and is not expected to finish until around 2036. After devoting most of his working life to the project, Gaudí died in 1926 with only around a quarter of the project complete. With significant aspects of the building still to be completed, the quest for new sources of stone has intensified in recent years.
To contribute to such an iconic landmark and be part of a project that has lasted for nearly 150 years is a great honour for the team at Dale View Quarry and Marshalls as a whole. It is critical that we continue to deliver stone worthy of such a monument.
Our approach
The team behind the project began purchasing from Marshalls in 2018 and commenced stone cutting in 2021. We supply the buff sandstone, for which Dale View Quarry is famous, in block form. All subsequent cutting and forming is handled by the team of masons and sculptors working on the building itself.
The main reasons they chose indigenous stones from our quarry are the consistency of colour, the texture that makes hand-carving easier and the fact that they are not susceptible to frost and salt.
The outcome
To date, we have supplied approximately 2,000 tonnes of stone, with the latest delivery being dispatched only recently. We anticipate receiving further orders as the project progresses.
After this latest order, David Smith, Operations Manager for Block Stone, commented,
“It’s a testament to the success of our 2018 supply and delivery that Marshalls Minerals was chosen once again to provide Stanton Moor block stone for the iconic Basilica de la Sagrada Familia.”
The church is designed to have three monumental façades: the Nativity façade to the East, the Passion façade to the West, and the Glory façade to the South. The bulk of Marshalls stone will be used on the Glory Façade, the largest of the three and the final one to be built.
The Glory façade will symbolise one’s ascension to God. It will also illustrate various scenes, such as Hell and Purgatory, and will incorporate elements including the seven deadly sins and the seven heavenly virtues. It is humbling to know that stone from the Dale View Quarry will play a starring role in this historical and epic piece of ecclesiastical architecture. It will be admired by millions of visitors for centuries to come.
Marshalls is proud to be working with the team at La Sagrada Familia to supply stone for this beautiful building. We have an enviable track record for paving many famous London locations, so it’s fantastic to add such an iconic European landmark to the list.
Within the framework of the construction of the Basilica, Marshalls Company collaborates with the Construction Board of the Expiatory Temple of the Sagrada Família.
