Santuari del Far, Sanctuary church in Susqueda, Spain

The Santuari del Far is a church in Susqueda, crowned on a cliff of the Far at 1,123 metres, on the boundary between Collsacabra and the Guilleries. Its nave is about eighteen metres deep and four wide, disproportionately long, built of rough cobbles bound with mortar under a pointed vault. Cut-stone arches open onto two side chapels, dated 1648 and 1884, and a low bell tower with a lightning rod rises at the north of the facade.

The Santuari del Far is documented as a church of Susqueda listed in Catalonia's Architectural Heritage Inventory. Its two side chapels date the building's later life: the left arch, formerly the chapel of Sant Marc and now of the Santíssim, carries the date 1648 carved on its keystone, while the opposite arch, opening onto the hostelry, was made in 1884. The hostelry itself was built in stages, with the south wing in 1826 and the north wing in 1860.

The sanctuary's name comes from the Latin inscription STELLA MARIS (Star of the Sea) carved on the church facade above a niche now holding an image of Sant Jordi. In front of the facade stands the small square Chapel of the Offerings, where devotees burn candles and oil lamps before a reproduction of the Mare de Déu. A commemorative stele beside it is dedicated by the Amics del Far to the poet Jacint Verdaguer.

The sanctuary stands at 1,123 m on the cliff edge of the Far, which separates the Collsacabra from the Guilleries and the Hostoles valley. The church is flanked by the hostelry buildings: the south wing dates from 1826 and the north wing from 1860, and the 1884 side chapel connects by a door to the hostelry.

The bell tower is deliberately low and flat-topped, with a small hut on the terrace holding a lightning rod. Its height was kept down because of repeated lightning strikes on the exposed cliff, so the four bell openings sit close above the two lower floors, which have only narrow slit windows.