Santander Cemetery’s Award-Winning Pardo Pantheon Undergoes Restoration
SANTANDER – The Pardo family pantheon in the Ciriego cemetery is receiving critical restoration work following years of deterioration.The structure, named “Best Monument of the Cemeteries of Spain” in 2025, features significant fresco paintings by Gerardo de Alvear that are now undergoing conservation.
The Santa María de Toraya Foundation, dedicated to the conservation and restoration of Cantabrian art and heritage, is leading the project. Restorer Lydia Quevedo explained the initial phase focuses on stabilizing existing paint layers. “The first thing we do is fix all the existing polychromy so as not to lose anything at all. Subsequently,we will clean small stains…and then we will intervene,” she said.
The pantheon’s dome depicts a celestial vault with four praying angels in red, purple, green, and orange.Much of the blue sky paint has flaked away, revealing the stone beneath, and the angels’ features are faded and chipped.
The Pardo pantheon was added to municipal heritage in 2018, triggering a preservation plan. An initial intervention by corten focused on exterior repairs to eliminate water leaks threatening the interior artwork. The current interior work represents the next phase in securing the long-term survival of this notable Santander landmark.
