Calle de Francisco Giralte

Francisco Giralte (c. 1510-1576) learned to carve wood in the workshop of Alonso Berruguete, inheriting from him the twisted figures and intense faces that he later softened with a serenity more his own. He worked on altarpieces across Castile until a decisive commission brought him to Madrid. Bishop Gutierre de Vargas Carvajal entrusted him with the altarpiece and cenotaphs of the Bishop’s Chapel, beside the church of San Andrés. The result is regarded as the peak of his career and remains the most notable Renaissance sculptural ensemble the city preserves. The calle de Francisco Giralte, however, lies in the Prosperidad district, far from that church where he spent his last years.