This long-awaited Catalan Cathedral is officially one step closer to completion

They say good things take time, and no undertaking is better proof of that than the Sagrada Família. Construction began on the Cathedral 144 years ago, but on February 20, a huge step towards its eventual completion was taken. 

Workers finally installed the upper arm (which measures 4.5 by 4.5 by 4.9 metres) on the building’s largest tower, completing a 17m by 13.5m cross of stone, glass, and enamelled ceramic tiles. 

The first piece of the cross, which was attached on October 27, made it the world’s tallest church at 162.91m, but now the building has officially reached its full height, standing 172.5m tall. 

The Sagrada Familia features 18 towers in total, each dedicated to important biblical figures. Many of these have been built externally, but the cross now sits atop the focal tower of Jesus Christ, at the centre of the largest group of six spires. 

‘Completion of the cross on the tower of Jesus Christ represents much more than the culmination of a phase of construction: it is the result of years of work and studying the legacy Antoni Gaudí left us,’ said head architect Jordi Faulí, according to the Architects Journal, ‘It is also a firm commitment to the future, to continue working to complete the Sagrada Família.’

Barcelona is spending 2026 celebrating the centenary of Antoni Gaudí’s passing, and plenty of events including concerts by the Catalan Choral Society and a huge mass on June 10 to mark the anniversary are taking place. You can read all about them in our guide. 

While there were hopes the building in its entirety would be complete for the occasion, delays mean that the Cathedral’s interior is yet to be finished. That didn’t stop us naming it one of the world’s most beautiful buildings, though. 

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