Dives Toletana: Treasures of Toledo Cathedral from Medieval to El Greco
For the first time in Estonia, visitors can see original works by El Greco and rare art treasures from Toledo Cathedral – one of Spain’s most important places of worship.
Toledo Cathedral is opening its extraordinary treasure chamber, revealing a thousand years of art and devotion, from the Visigoths to the Spanish Golden Age. Its walls preserve layers of living heritage: the spiritual depth of the Visigoths, the refined geometry of Islamic art, the luminous heights of Gothic architecture, and the humanist renewal of the Renaissance.
Artworks displayed
Gallery
Toledo – a crossroads of cultures and religions
Toledo, the ancient capital of kingdoms, is home to the Primate Cathedral of Spain – Catedral Primada. The archdiocese’s roots reach back to the earliest dawn of Christianity. The city itself has long been a place of encounter and cultural exchange: for centuries, Christian, Muslim and Jewish communities lived side by side, weaving one of Europe’s richest cultural tapestries. Toledo Cathedral is the embodiment of its intertwined history and the meeting point of faith and power: a place where different religions, cultures and eras have left their marks. For over fifteen centuries, the ancient Mozarabic liturgy has resounded under the cathedral’s vaults, uniting history and sacred and earthly riches into a single whole: Dives Toletana.
The curator Carlos Alonso Pérez-Fajardo states, “An exhibition on Dives Toletana is much more than an exhibition about the cathedral of a Spanish city. Its historical weight condenses the development of a country and a culture. Among its treasures are testimonies of some of the most important moments of the different kingdoms of the Iberian peninsula, from Visigothic Hispania to Spain in the Golden Age. One thousand years of works of art promoted by the main cardinals, princes and monarchs from the history of the country and created by some of the greatest artists of Western culture. They are living elements, objects of devotion that still proclaim faith through the liturgy. This is an artistic heritage that embodies a millennium of immaterial legacy.”
The curator Merike Kurisoo points to the connection between the two cities. “Toledo and Tallinn are connected through the late-medieval painter Michel Sittow (1469–1525), born in Tallinn. His earliest known works were created in the Luna Chapel of Toledo Cathedral, and his final works – the paintings on the wings of the Passion altarpiece – are preserved here in Niguliste. Sittow began his artistic journey in the most important Spanish church before serving at the court of the Catholic monarchs. In 2025, we are commemorating the 500th anniversary of his death.”
A journey through the Middle Ages to El Greco
The exhibition Dives Toletana: Treasures of Toledo Cathedral from the Medieval to El Greco spans the 10th to 17th centuries. Each work reveals a different layer of Toledo’s spiritual and artistic past: from the Mozarabic liturgical book Liber Misticus to monumental tapestries and liturgical objects, including works created during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs Isabella I and Ferdinand II.
For the first time in Estonia, the works of El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos) (1541–1614), a Greek-born artist and, one of Spain’s most extraordinary painters, will be presented to the public. His works are among the pinnacle of European art heritage and highlight the city’s central role in art history. El Greco transformed Toledo into a symbol of light and spirit, a place where heaven and earth meet.
The exhibition is being held in collaboration with Toledo Cathedral, the Santa Cruz Museum, and the Church of St Nicholas of Bari in Toledo, and marks the upcoming 800th anniversary of the cathedral.
Team
Curators: Merike Kurisoo, Carlos Alonso Pérez-Fajardo
Coordinator: Annika Teras
Exhibition design: Kaarel Eelma
Graphic design: Tuuli Aule
Intermediary for Spanish Institutions: Carlos Alonso Pérez-Fajardo
Registrar: Helen Volber
Installation managers: Andres Amos, Tõnis Medri, Villu Plink
Exhibition team: Laura Tahk, Kaidi Saavan, Marju Kubre, Tarmo Saaret, Hedi Kard, Kaisa-Piia Pedajas, Kärt Lend, Keidi Kaitsa-Pihlamägi, Kadi Raudalainen, Mati Schönberg, Piret Järvan, Kristjan Roos, Agathe Peri, Marii Tunnel, Karin Kaljuläte, Richard Adang, Lauri Lenk, Neftali Peral, Merilin Tali, Liis Suuk, Hendrik Vahter, Tanel Asmer, Grete Ots, Ruth Paas, Külli Kõiv, Renita Raudsepp, Kille Onton, Nele Hanson, Kadi Tuulik.
In collaboration: Toledo Cathedral, the Santa Cruz Museum, and the Church of St Nicholas of Bari in Toledo
