The New Cathedral of Salamanca was built beside the Old Cathedral, which stayed open during construction. Its sources vary on the dates. The first stone was laid in 1512, and building ran from 1513 to 1733, with work largely halted for most of the 17th century. The infobox calls it Late Gothic, Plateresque and Baroque, and it is built of Villamayor freestone. Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón became master builder in 1538, and Joaquín de Churriguera designed the Baroque dome and choir.
The Lisbon earthquake of 1755 cracked the central dome, which was replaced with a Neoclassical one. The bell tower, about 302 feet (92 m) high, tilted, and was strapped with eight chains and lined with stone.
On the Puerta de Ramos, a stone astronaut was carved in 1992 as a contemporary touch during restoration. The cathedral was declared a national monument in 1887.
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