The Abbey of Santa Ana

The Abbey of Santa Ana, in Malaga

The Abbey of Santa Ana, better known as the Abbey of the Cister, is a little cistercian jewel nestled in the heart of Malaga, where the Cistercian nuns have lived since the seventeenth century. The Malaga audio-guided tour stops here, with respect, to evoke this sanctuary of a luminous simplicity, rebuilt in 1878 by the architect Jerónimo Cuervo.

The cistercian jewel of the heart of Malaga

Perhaps you have already heard it called the cistercian abbey, but here, in Malaga, we rather speak with tenderness of the Abbey of Santa Ana, a little jewel nestled in the heart of the town. No need for gilding or vertiginous spires: its simplicity, its light and its just measure suffice to captivate the gaze, to the point that you have difficulty detaching yourself from it. The story begins at the beginning of the seventeenth century, when the Cistercian nuns settle in Malaga. After a first convent, they put down their bags here, in 1617. The building that you have before your eyes, dates from 1878: it was entirely rebuilt by the architect Jerónimo Cuervo, and even if it has known several restorations since, notably in 1990, it has kept all its charm. Above the door, a fine decoration and a statue watch over the entrance of the sanctuary. Inside, in the contemplation proper to monastic places, the church presents a single nave of two bays covered with a barrel vault with transverse arches, and a major chapel with a semicircular plan, in the sobriety dear to the Cistercian order, that favours bareness and light over excessive ornamentation. The abbey, still inhabited by a community of nuns, remains a place of prayer and silence, discreetly hidden behind the shops and the restaurants of the district. A monastic sanctuary and a haven of peace, the Abbey of Santa Ana is discovered with respect.

What to see

Here you discover, with respect, a little cistercian jewel nestled in the heart of Malaga, inhabited by the Cistercian nuns since 1617; the present building, rebuilt in 1878 by the architect Jerónimo Cuervo, seduces by its simplicity and its light, with a single nave with a barrel vault and a semicircular major chapel, in the sobriety dear to the order. The Abbey of Santa Ana is a haven of peace of Malaga. It is a stop to be discovered with respect.

Practical information

The Abbey of Santa Ana lies in the heart of the historic centre of Malaga, discreetly hidden behind the shops of the district, reachable on foot. A place of worship inhabited by a community of nuns, it can be visited with respect for silence; access and hours follow the conditions of the place, which vary. It is best to enquire before coming and to respect the contemplation of the community.

What is the Abbey of Santa Ana in Malaga?

A little cistercian jewel nestled in the heart of Malaga, inhabited by the Cistercian nuns since 1617; the present building was rebuilt in 1878 by the architect Jerónimo Cuervo, seducing by its simplicity and its light, with a single nave with a barrel vault and a semicircular major chapel, in the sobriety dear to the order of the Cister.

Where is the Abbey of Santa Ana in Malaga?

In the heart of the historic centre of Malaga, in Spain.