page_title: Iglesia de la Vera Cruz, Segovia
section_title: Interior
hierarchical_section_title: Iglesia de la Vera Cruz, Segovia / Interior
caption_attribution_description: Español: Preside un crucificado del siglo XIII
context_page_description: The church of the True Cross is a Roman Catholic church located in the San Marcos district of the city of Segovia, in the autonomous community of Castile and León, in Spain. Formerly known as the Church of Holy Sepulchre, it is located to the north of the city, very close to the convent of San Juan de la Cruz, on the slope that ascends to Zamarramala, a town of which it was, for centuries, a parish church.
  It consists of a nave with a dodecagonal floor plan that surrounds a small central two-story shrine, to which apses and the tower were added. It is one of the best-preserved churches of this style in Europe. It was declared a Spanish Property of Cultural Interest on 4 July 1919.
context_section_description: In the walls of the nave remain vestiges of the old mural decoration as well as two niches, one with the icon of the patron saint of the Order of Malta, Our Lady of Philermo and another with the icon of the patron saint, St. John the Baptist. The flags of the Order of Malta, which refer to the languages into which it is divided, are located throughout the nave.
  In the central apse there is an image of Jesus crucified from the 13th century. In the left apse is located the chapel of the tabernacle where there is a copy of the image of St. John the Baptist, patron saint of the Order of Malta, whose original is in its headquarters in Madrid. In the right apse is the Romanesque image of the Virgin of Peace.
  The aedicula is a small two-story shrine located in the center of the church. It is accessed by a double staircase under which opens the access to the lower floor, facing the main door. The second floor is crowned by a caliphal dome and in the center there is an altar with Mudéjar decoration. The lower floor, with four pointed arches oriented with the cardinal points, has a ribbed vault.
  The uses for these rooms are unknown. It is estimated that in the upper room, the arms sailing was carried out before the knights' crossings and in the lower room penitential acts were carried out. Today, religious celebrations of the Knights of the Order of Malta are organised on the upper floor.
  Situated on the ground floor of the tower, a 16th-century niche carved in stone with the coats of arms of one of the Commanders of the Order of the Holy Sepulcher was built to venerate a relic of the True Cross. The relic of the cross is nowadays on display in the parish church of Zamarramala, where it was moved after several robbery attempts.
  Situated on one of the walls of the circular nave is the Gothic altarpiece that adorned the central apse. It dates from 1516, from the Castilian school with scenes from the life of Christ.
caption: The high altar of the church
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