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Cathedral Made of Recycled Materials

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Don Justo is not an architect. He was a farmer before he became a priest at his 27 years old. He served as a priest for nine years, till a serious illness forced him to leave the temple. He promised himself that if he survived, he would build a temple in honor of the Virgin, which he prayed during his illness.

Cathedral Made by Justo Martines of Recycled Materials

Cathedral built by Justo Martines

Cathedral built by Justo Martines

He did not do any drawings prior to construction. He just began to build. The building is slightly reminiscent of St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, the White House in Washington and some Spanish castles. Most of the bricks, which were used for the temple construction, were picked up in landfills nearby brick factories. That is why the walls look unusual for this kind of structures.

As Justo Martines says, he never had a plan of the construction. He kept everything in his head. Don Justo has never been engaged in construction. His schooling was interrupted by the Civil War.

Don Justo was inspired by books about castles, cathedrals and other religious buildings. Thanks to them he came up with the idea to build his cathedral.

Justo Martines

Justo Martines

The Cathedral’s area is more than 85,000 ft2. The dome of the building is about 130 ft in height and about 40 ft in diameter. Old empty oil barrels were used as formwork for the cement columns. The roof is covered with fragments of bricks and tiles that Don Justo managed to get around. Some areas of the walls contain strange things like paint cans. Some materials were donated by different people for the construction. Sometimes his nephews and other volunteers help him.

Despite the fact that Justo Martinez has no plan and official permission for construction, the Madrid government has nothing against his idea. Now Don Justo is discussing the whole structure with architects.

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Alicia Kim

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