Central Madrid's other royally endowed Habsburg monastery nestles quietly in a charming little square between the Royal Palace and Plaza España. Though paling slightly in comparison with the incomparable Descalzas Reales, it still remains by any other standards a must-see. Founded by Margaret of Austria and Philip III in 1611 and rebuilt after a disastrous fire by Ventura Rodriguez in 1767, it's inhabited by Augustine Recoletos nuns who remain out of sight in their cloisters during visiting hours. The facade is a fine example of post-Herreran style, and inside there's an impressive selection of polychrome sculptures and paintings, highlighted by Ribera's superb portrait of John the Baptist. The most extraordinary of its many salons is the reliquario (relics room), where the solidified blood of Saint Pantaleon, permanently kept in a glass orb, supposedly liquefies for 24 hours every year beginning at midnight on July 27 (the eve of his saint's day). According to legend, if it does not liquefy disaster will follow. On display all around it are the bone fragments and bronze, copper, and gold reliquaries of other saints and martyrs. The main cloister and church are also well worth a look. As in the Descalzas Reales, tours are conducted in Spanish.

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Madrid, 3rd Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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