Virgen del Mar Island

Virgen del Mar Island is a small rocky islet connected to the mainland by a stone bridge on the northern coast of Santander, crowned by the hermitage dedicated to the city's patron saint. Worship of the Virgen del Mar is documented since 1315, and the hermitage was founded in 1400 by Gonzalo Fernandez de Pamanes.

The current building, with a single nave of three vaulted sections and a hexagonal chancel, has been rebuilt several times after storm damage. The main altarpiece was commissioned in 1712. The Virgen del Mar was officially proclaimed patroness of Santander in 1980, celebrated on the Monday after Whit Sunday.

The surrounding cliffs, the bridge over the waves and the hermitage silhouette against the Cantabrian Sea make this one of Santander's most photographed spots. At sunset, the raking light on rock and sea is especially dramatic.