Antezana Hospital

The hospital of Nuestra Señora de la Misericordia, founded by Luis de Antezana and his wife, Isabel de Guzmán, in 1483 on Calle Mayor, is one of the oldest hospitals in Europe still operating, today as a social-health centre and care home. It is visited as the Museum of Golden Age Medicine: a house with a wooden courtyard, apothecary and chapel that has been caring for the sick for more than five hundred years.

What you see

The guided tour takes in the spaces of the old hospital with a thread about how the sick were treated and cared for from the 16th century: the apothecary, the Mudéjar courtyard, the poor people's dining room, the men's and women's infirmaries, the doctors' room, the medicinal plant garden and the rooms of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. The courtyard, beyond the entrance hall, combines octagonal pillars with wooden posts and a projecting gallery; beside the staircase is the so-called well of Saint Ignatius.

Ignatius of Loyola lived and worked here as a nurse in 1526 and 1527, while studying at the university. His kitchen is on the upper floor, and the chapel of San Ignacio, Baroque, with 17th-century frescoes on the dome and a canvas of the saint signed by Diego González de la Vega in 1669, was built over the room he occupied. The church, from the 15th century and remodelled in 1702, has on its altar a carving of the Virgen de la Misericordia attributed to the circle of Martínez Montañés.

The medical history is the most curious part: after the university was founded in 1499, its doctors and surgeons were the professors of Medicine, and from 1540 to 1830 students did anatomy practice here, which makes it, according to the foundation, the first university hospital in Spain. Tradition says Rodrigo de Cervantes, the writer's father, worked here as a surgeon, opposite his house; the tourist office clarifies that there is no documentary proof.

Hours and price

The visit lasts about 45 minutes and costs €6, €4 reduced. According to the foundation, there are tours from Tuesday to Friday at 11:00, 12:00 and 13:00 without booking, and at 16:00 with booking; on Saturdays at 11:30, 12:30, 13:30, 16:00, 17:00 and 18:00, and on Sundays and public holidays at 11:30, 12:30 and 13:30. The November municipal leaflet adds a Sunday tour at 16:00. Groups are small and, as it is still a healthcare centre, changes of hours are posted on the door. Bookings on 619 289 144 or 680 799 356.

On Saturdays at 18:00, Alcalá Turismo y Más also organises a route on Saint Ignatius in Alcalá that leaves from the hospital, lasting about two and a quarter hours, for €10.

Nearby

It is at Calle Mayor, 46, wall to wall with the Cervantes Birthplace: you can see both in the same morning. From here, Calle Mayor and Plaza de Cervantes lead to the university.