In 1325, a farmer searching for a stray cow reportedly spotted a statue of the Virgin buried in the soil. In time, this statue became venerated throughout the world, honored in Spain by Queen Isabel, Columbus, and Cervantes. Known as the Dark Virgin of Guadalupe, it is said to have been carved by St. Luke. A shrine was built to commemorate the statue, and tributes poured in from all over the world, making the Guadalupe monastery one of the wealthiest in Christendom. The statue is found in the 18th-century chapel, Camarín ★, where a treasure-trove of riches surrounds the Virgin, including jasper, marble, and precious woods, plus nine paintings by Luca Giordano.

The church itself is noted for the wrought-iron railings in its naves and a magnificently decorated sacristy ★★ with eight richly imaginative 17th-century masterpieces by Francisco de Zurbarán. The museum is devoted to ecclesiastical vestments and choir books produced by 16th-century miniaturists. The 16th-century cloister is Flamboyant Gothic in style, but the pièces de résistance are the stunning Mudéjar cloister, with its brick-and-tile Gothic Mudéjar shrine dating from 1405, and a Moorish fountain from the 14th century.