The monastery of San Martin Pinario was built in 1494

It was founded by a group of italian benedictine monks in order to watch over the mortal remains of the apostle and to pray. The name Pinario comes from the pines which were in the place where they founded the first chapel in the 11th century. Later on, when the order achieved more splendour they built the church and the monastery in 1494. It is one of the most important baroque buildings in Spain, together with the cathedral, and one of the biggest of the country. Four doric columns are the frame of the door and the image of Saint Benedict is in the centre. The upper structure consists of a coat of arms from Spain. The image of Saint Martin from Tours on horseback sharing his cloak with a poor person, who represents Christ, was added by Fernando de Casas in the 17th century. In this century the monastery suffered other modifications that ended in its current appearance, which shows a wide range of styles. Nowadays, the building is a museum, a hall of residences for men, occasionally an hotel from June until September and, mainly, the see of the Main Seminary and the school of Theology.