Transparente (Cathedral of Toledo)

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The Transparente is a Baroque altarpiece in the ambulatory of Toledo Cathedral in Spain. Its name comes from its unique lighting: a large hole high in the wall and a back opening in the altarpiece let sunlight reach the tabernacle, making it feel “transparent.” It was made from 1729 to 1732 by Narciso Tomé and his four sons, using marble, jasper, bronze, paint and stucco. Archbishop Diego de Astorga y Céspedes ordered the project to honor the Holy Sacrament, and it cost 200,000 ducats. The monument was hailed as the Eighth Wonder of the World in a celebratory poem, and Cardinal Astorga y Céspedes is buried at its feet. James Michener notes in Iberia that the design was meant to allow light from the ambulatory to illuminate the tabernacle behind the tall screen. Tomé and his team created a dramatic scene with angels, saints and prophets around the openings, using robes and foliage to hide the structural cuts. Biblical figures appear to tumble around the skylight, and at the outer edge stands Christ on a bank of clouds with angels. The back of the piece is a marble tower that rises from floor to ceiling, built to conceal the openings while still letting light pass through.