Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de la O

The Parish Church of Nuestra Señora de la O in Chipiona was built in the purest Gothic style, and was reformed in the 16th and subsequent centuries. The first information regarding who made the church refers to Diego de Riaño, who states that he is the general contractor for this church in a power of attorney dated 1533. It is presumed that it was previously an Arab mosque and, from the available documentation, that the ruins of the original church lie below it.

The layout, the apse and the stone side entrance in the wall on the epistle side are conserved from that first stage. It follows the precepts of Gothic style: it has a pointed arch, flat opening and pointed tympanum decorated with rosettes and a central oculus with the monogram of María.

The essential reforms that take place in the late 18th century affected the presbytery, when the gallery was put in place for the organ and the choir, and the steps to the main altar were brought forward to the first section of the nave on the gospel side, which was separated from the baptismal chapel by building an outdoor annexe with an entrance to the same section; the covering of the side naves and of the semi-columns of the side walls and, above all, the exterior decoration of the church. The main façade, located at the back of the church, belongs to this period.

Inside, the image of the saint the church is named after, Nuestra Señora de la O, in polychrome wood (C.18) by Manuel García de Santiago and with iconography referring directly to the fertility of María, is worthy of note. Other interesting features: the interesting iconography of the Virgen de la Rosa (C.16), the choir stalls (C.18), frescos (C.17–18) and the clock tower (C.19).