Ermita de San Telmo

In the area where the parque de San Telmo is located today, the city walls rose in the 16th century. At this strategic point, almost on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, the first hermitage dedicated to San Pedro González Telmo, patron saint of sailors, was founded in 1530. After the Dutch attack on the island in 1599, it was rebuilt in the 17th century by the guild of mareantes, or seafarers, who had here their headquarters, place of worship and burial ground.

The hermitage, which features one of the most beautiful altarpieces on the island of Gran Canaria, is an example of Mudéjar architecture with a Gothic-Renaissance doorway. Among its rich decoration, the coffered ceiling and the main altarpiece stand out, a Rococo work completed in 1776; also noteworthy is the image of the Inmaculada Concepción, by the sculptor, painter and altarpiece maker Pedro Duque Cornejo.

Today it is the parish church of San Bernardo and is listed as a Bien de Interés Cultural.