The tower, together with the church, is one of the most emblematic parts of the group of buildings of the Universidad Laboral de Gijón
The tower stands in the south-west area; it is rectangular in section and is considered the tallest stone building in Spain and the tallest building in Asturias.
Descriptions of the tower project
As the architect Luis Moya describes in his notes on the Universidad Laboral, the tower rises from within the buildings, as at El Escorial, and not in isolation in the Italian manner, since such tall structures are very difficult to resolve.
The tower itself follows the model of the Giralda of Seville, which derives directly from the Lighthouse of Alexandria, and even more so with its Baroque crowning than with its original cushion form, which was a rare intuition of the architect Fernán Pérez. From this model have been taken the proportional relationships of height and width of the different stages, followed exactly as befits the perfection of so illustrious a tower, but applied from the viewpoints of our tower, which are very different from those of the Giralda.
Aerial view of the TOWER
THE TOWER SEEN FROM ONE SIDE OF THE CHURCH
PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE TOWER FROM ITS FOOT AND FROM THE DORIC COURTYARD
The tower consists of five superimposed stages on a square base and two crowning stages on a circular base. The second stage is in turn divided into four floors; above this, the circular clock on all four faces of the tower stands out: it is at a height of 48 metres (20 modules of 2.40 metres) and has a diameter of 3.60 metres (1.5 times the 2.40 module).
PHOTOGRAPH OF THE 21.6-METRE SPIRE, FROM ITS ANCHORAGE AT A HEIGHT OF 130.6 METRES UP TO 152.20 METRES
PHOTOGRAPH OF THE CROSS THAT CROWNS THE TOWER
THE TOWER UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN PERIOD PHOTOGRAPHS FROM 1950
PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE VARIOUS PHASES OF CONSTRUCTION OF THE TOWER
PERIOD PHOTOGRAPHS SHOWING THE PROGRESS OF THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE TOWER, ONE VIEW FROM THE EAST WITH THE ASSEMBLY HALL ON THE RIGHT, AND ANOTHER FROM THE CENTRAL COURTYARD.
PHOTOGRAPH WITH A GENERAL VIEW FROM THE CARRETERA DE LA PROVIDENCIA, WITH THE TOWER PRACTICALLY FINISHED
Rafael Morán Rumoroso
info@universidad-laboral-gijon.es
