The first stone of the Sagrada Família basilica in Barcelona was laid in 1882 following a neo-gothic design drawn up by the original architect, Francisco de Paula del Villar y Lozano.
The first stone of the Sagrada Família basilica in Barcelona was laid in 1882 following a neo-gothic design drawn up by the original architect, Francisco de Paula del Villar y Lozano. © David Ramos/Getty Images

Setting a height record probably wasn’t the chief concern of Antoni Gaudí when he began work on his gloriously idiosyncratic masterpiece, the Sagrada Familia, in 1883. Nevertheless, when its tallest tower is finally completed in 2026, for the centennial of Gaudí’s death, the basilica will become the tallest religious structure in Europe, the tallest building in Barcelona and the tallest church in the world.

The basilica’s current architect, Jordi Faulí, said late last month that over the next decade the Sagrada Familia would add six new towers and nearly double in height, transforming one of Barcelona’s marquee tourist attractions. Each tower is dedicated to a different religious figure; the highest, “The Tower of Jesus Christ,” will rise 558 feet, or 170 meters, above ground.

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Admission fees from more than three million annual visitors are helping to offset construction costs, which Mr. Faulí said had run to €25 million a year. If completed as hoped in 2030, the building will have taken nearly 150 years to finish.

Gaudí had always suspected the construction might outlast him. When asked about the time frame, he remarked, “My client is in no hurry.”