In many villages of the Pyrenees everything is possible during the night when they celebrate the Festes del Foc, or Festivals of Fire. This ancestral tradition brings all the families and neighbours together on the night of Sant Joan to watch the magical light of the bonfires, the falles, the haros and the brandons.
The fire of Les Falles del Pirineu (or Torches of the Pyrenees) is burnt to coincide with the summer solstice as a symbol of renewal and life. The fire-bearers carry it down from the mountains using the
Falles (or wooden torches) which they have prepared themselves. Thus, like a snake of light that descends the mountain, the fire of Sant Joan reaches the town square and the bonfire is lit around which the town dances all night.
The celebration is particular to each locality, and the fact is that there are up to sixty-three villages between Catalonia, Aragon, Andorra and the South of France that share in this age-old tradition. All of these have been on UNESCO's
List of Intangible Heritage since 2015.
English translation unavailable for L'art de la pedra seca.
English translation unavailable for Toc manual de campanes.
How does a Barça player feel when he is about to go out onto the field? Lovers of football can experience that here in the flesh at this museum. Currently it is one of the most visited museums in Catalonia, with an annual average of more than 1,200,000 people.
The idea to make a Barça Museum was by Joan Gamper, the founder of the club. It was finally inaugurated in the year 1984. Since then, visitors have been able to see the trophies won by all the sporting sections of the Catalan club throughout its history and all kinds of objects related to the team, the players and the followers.
It also has a sport art collection, with works by Salvador Dalí, Joan Miró, Antoni Tàpies and Josep Maria Subirachs. Additionally, it holds the Futbolart Collection, owned by Pablo Ornaque, considered to be one of the best private collections in the world concerning football.
Starting in the year 2010, the Camp Nou Experience project began, a tour that places the visitor in a leading role using immersive technologies (video walls, touchscreens, audio, recreations, etc.). Apart from the museum, you visit the Stadium, the Messi Area and the Multimedia Area. During your visit, you can go through the locker room tunnel and transport yourself to a big final or photograph a replica of the European Cup in the press room.
Ethnology is more than just a set of pieces. The objects are the starting point allowing visitors to interpret their social surroundings. This is the main premise of the current Ethnology Museum of Barcelona, fully renovated in 2015.
It began in the first decade of the 20th century, when a group of pioneering intellectuals in Catalan ethnology saw the need to preserve and interpret traditional societies. Ultimately, two institutions were opened, the collections of which would form the foundation of the Ethnology Museum of Barcelona: the Museum of Popular Arts and Industries (1942) and the Ethnological and Colonial Museum (1949). They collected and exhibited objects from the five continents. Currently a part of this collection can be seen in the Museum of World Cultures.
After its latest remodelling, the Ethnology Museum of Barcelona is now focused on the Catalan area, but without forgetting its relationship with other communities and cultures. The main hub is the permanent exhibit “Sentir el patrimoni” (Feel the Legacy).
The central space of the room is occupied by six large objects (a boat, a wine press, a loom, a blacksmith blower and an herbal cabinet) which symbolize six thematic areas that make up all cultures. They are surrounded by other pieces that show the peculiarities and the universality of human culture. A whole side of the room is made up of a large frieze of objects of different geographic, historic and thematic origins.
The exhibit has audiovisual resources and multimedia content and even an area where visitors can touch certain pieces. It is also recommended to visit the two inner patios. In one of them, visitors can see the two giants of the city of Barcelona, Queen Violant and King James I, created by Domènech Umbert in the year 1984.
Frederic Marès, in addition to being a sculptor, developed a passion for collecting from a very early age. Over a period of more than 80 years, he assembled a large number of works of art (particularly sculpture) and more than 50,000 objects. In 1944, he gave his collections to the city of Barcelona which exhibited the collection two years later at the Museu Frederic Marès (Frederic Marès Museum), located in the former Royal Palace of the Counts of Barcelona.
In the basement and on the first two floors the
collection of Hispanic sculpture from ancient times until the 19th century are concentrated . One of the jewels in the crown is
L’aparició de Jesús als seus deixebles al mar (The Appearance of Jesus to his Disciples at the Sea), attributed to the Master of Cabestany, a masterpiece of the Catalan Romanesque which came from the monastery of
Sant Pere de Rodes. Sculpture of the Spanish Renaissance and Baroque periods are also well represented. To a lesser extent, other artistic collections are on display (painting, metalwork, furniture and textiles).
Also displayed in the same building are the objects that Marès had collected: dolls, clocks, fans, pipes, playing cards, daguerreotypes, pharmacy jars, tin soldiers, etc. This area is known as the
Gabinet del col·leccionista, or the Collector’s cabinet (Marès called it the Sentimental Museum). The visitor can take a tour through 17 rooms, in which the thousands of curious and endearing objects have been brought together which reflect the life and customs of the past, especially from the 19th century.
Finally, those who wish to delve more deeply into the figure of Frederic Marès can visit the
study/library of the artist. This space has a set of sculptural works by Marès, which he himself chose to display to the public, as well as a number of personal items.
Food has long been used to bring people together and celebrate a religious or secular festival, and in agriculture, especially at the times of the solstice. And one of the most significant elements of such celebrations are the desserts, which have specific recipes according to the seasonal calendar.
Right at the start the year as we find the tortell de Reis or Cake of the Three Kings, a pastry stuffed with marzipan that hides both a figurine and a bean inside. Also widely known is the tortell de Sant Antoni.
Mardi Gras, or Fat Thursday, brings us coques de llardons or lardy cakes, a final excess before Lent. For these weeks leading up to Easter we have bunyols, a type of doughnut, as well as the "crema catalana" reserved for the day of Saint Joseph. Finally comes the Easter Sunday and you mustn’t miss out on the mona, or Easter cakes. Godfathers give them their godchildren. Traditionally they resemble the tortell de Reis, but instead of candied fruit they have hard-boiled eggs on top, one for every godchild.
The arrival of the summer is celebrated with the coca de Sant Joan, or Saint John’s cakes, the star of the Festival along with firecrackers. And in the autumn the panellets arrive. These small cakes are eaten on the last day of October, on the eve of All Saints’ Day. It is said that they have a round shape so as to imitate a rosary and be carried to the mass of the dead. They are blessed and eaten during the liturgical ceremony. But, if there's a sweet feast par excellence, it is Christmas, which is celebrated with neula, a type of biscuit, and torron or nougat.
For some years new sweets have been added to the calendar such as the cakes and pastries for Sant Jordi, Mother's Day or the eleventh of September.
Small businesses have a great importance for the economic and social fabric of Catalonia as they have traditionally been a unifying element in the everyday life of towns and cities. There are a good number of shops that retain their original look and which can be considered as heritage assets (for their historic and, often, artistic interest).
Of all the local establishments, those linked to food predominate, starting with restaurants, inns, hotels and eating houses. Although this has not always been explicitly recognised, to a large extent they are responsible for the survival of many traditional recipes. Forming part of this list are the 7 Portes, Can Culleretes, Pitarra and Can Lluís in Barcelona. The Fonda Europa (Granollers); the Tall de Conill (Capellades) and la Fitorra (Vilanova i la Geltrú), all have more than a 100 years of history.
To buy bread as it has always been in Barcelona, you can go to the Fleca Balmes or the Forn Mistral. A handful of bakeries faithful to the craft and tradition have been preserved in Catalonia such as the Forn Can Geroni (Vilanova del Vallès), the Soler (Vic), the Jaume Monell (Manresa), and Cal Pelegrí (Sant Pau d'Ordal). There are also quite a number of centuries-old patisseries such as the Boadella (Banyoles), the Ferrer (Olot), the Valero (Riba-roja d'Ebre, Móra d'Ebre), Can Tuyarro (Coloma de Farners) or Castelló (Girona), famous for their Miralls de Santa Clara (Mirrors of Santa Clara).
Other establishments linked to the Catalan commercial tradition are the colmados or grocery stores, also called colonials (colonials) or ultramarines (overseas) because they specialised in imported products. Not many have been preserved, but La Confiança, in Mataró, is one of the best appreciated. Designed by Puig i Cadafalch in 1894, it has kept its modernista decoration intact.
To this group must be added pharmacies (such as Franquesa, in Barcelona), grocers (such as Boter, in Badalona) and drapers (such as Sastreria Queralt, in Reus). And even chandlers, such as Subirà in Barcelona which dates back to 1761.
Since 1979, every first weekend in July,the
Associació de Raiers de la Noguera Pallaresa (Noguera Pallares River Rafters Association) takes advantage of the fact that this is the time of the year when the water in the rivers runs highest in order to celebrate Raiers, or
River Rafters’ Day. The day is given over in honour of this ancient trade, dedicated to river transport, which historically has been very important for the economy of Pallars.
That of the raier, or river rafter, was a hard and risky trade, which consisted of transporting the wood from the Pyrenees to the flat lands of the coast, using their rafts to take advantage of the river currents. The great popular festival to remember them begins with the construction of this traditional boat: the trunks placed side-by-side, the oak transoms, the birch spars, the rudders and the two oars that will allow the raft to be steered. Finally, the deck is built which houses the cargo, that is, the dry clothes, the food and the bottle of wine.
On Sunday morning, the highlight of the Day takes place: the descent of the rafts down the Noguera Pallaresa river. From 11 am, the rafters, dressed in period clothing, cover the five-kilometre stretch between the Presa de la Llania and the Pont de Claverol. Crowds of people gather on the banks of the river and, when they arrive, there is no shortage of music and the traditional brotherhood meal closes the day.
A new reason for celebration arrived in 2022, the year in which the craft of raier or rafter was included on
UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. The candidacy, presented jointly by the governments of Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Latvia, Poland and Spain, highlighted the social cohesion linked to the rafting tradition, the
sustainable use of wood and water, the survival of artisanal techniques and the relationship between communities and nature.
In Roman times, with the arrival of spring, the houses were decorated with flowers and herbs. The festivals of the Enramades or bowers continue this tradition, covering the streets with carpets of flowers to celebrate Corpus Christi. One of the most prominent festivals of the Enramades is in Arbúcies, which already appears in documentation from the 16th century and was declared a traditional Festival of National Interest in 1999. It is celebrated during the eight days of the Corpus Christi festival.
In its beginnings, branches were placed in front of the houses, so that the whole street would be covered with garlands made of leaves and flowers. Hence the name "enramades" or bowers. Today the branches and garlands have been replaced by paper and plastic flags. However, what has lasted up to the present day are the carpets of flowers that were used to decorate the streets along which the solemn Corpus Christi procession passed. The women and children would gather flowers from the woods during the vigil and would scatter them on Corpus Christi day itself. During the post-war period (1947), they started to make drawings and designs with the flower petals.
Until the last century, the Festival of the Enramades in Arbúcies had a strong religious flavour. The procession, led by the passage of the Blessed Sacrament, was the main element of the traditional celebration. Since 1977, it has been replaced by a parade with giants, pipers, floats and other festive elements. The main event of the secular celebration is the dance that each district performs in the most representative style.
