Barcelona Cathedral

The Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia is the seat of the Archbishopric of Barcelona and one of the oldest constructions in the city. Its construction began in 1298 by order of King James II on the same site as a previous Romanesque cathedral, which had earlier replaced a Paleo-Christian one. The cloister was completed in 1448, but the façade, initially planned in the 15th century, was never built. It was not until 1887 that industrialist Manuel Girona offered to finance the construction following that original design. Shortly afterward, the towers and dome (1906-1913) were added, topped by an image of Saint Helena, a figure to whom the Girona family was deeply devoted. 

The cathedral follows the typical Gothic church layout, in the shape of a cross with three naves, an ambulatory, and a transept. It has nine chapels adorned with large stained-glass windows and a false triforium from which one can observe the keystones from a distance of about three meters. The cathedral has five entrances; the oldest, Sant Iu's door, dates back to 1298 and was the main entrance for 500 years. Particularly noteworthy are the marble altar, consecrated in 1337 and supported by two 6th-century capitals from the Paleo-Christian cathedral, and the choir, begun in 1390. Its stalls are among the most remarkable Gothic sculptural ensembles in Catalonia. Between 1517 and 1518, Juan de Borgoña painted the coats of arms of the knights of the Order of the Golden Fleece, which convened in Barcelona in 1519 by order of Emperor Charles V. 

The cloister is one of the cathedral's most visited features. Built between the 14th and 15th centuries, it can be accessed externally through two doors, Pietat and Saint Eulalia, and internally through a Romanesque doorway, possibly originating from the earlier cathedral. It has a quadrangular layout with a garden featuring palm trees, magnolias, an orange tree, and a fountain. The thirteen geese that live there symbolize Saint Eulalia, who was thirteen years old when she was martyred.

How to get to the Cathedral of Barcelona?

The Gothic Quarter stop on the Red Route of the Barcelona Bus Turístic drops you off on Via Laietana, right at the entrance to Avinguda de la Catedral!

For the curious ones

• The Chapel of the Holy Christ of Lepanto houses a figure with an unusual posture. It is said that this Christ was aboard the Galley of John of Austria during the Battle of Lepanto (1571) and leaned to dodge a bullet. Another legend claims that it moved to cover a hole that threatened to sink the vessel. A full-scale replica of the galley can be seen at the Maritime Museum. 
• The Cathedral of Barcelona contains tombs, altars, and Marian devotions dedicated to over 140 saints, but the most significant are three women: Saint Helena, located atop the dome; Saint Lucy, to whom the Romanesque chapel is dedicated; and Saint Eulàlia, co-patroness of Barcelona, whose tomb is in the magnificent Gothic crypt. 
• The cathedral's 21 bells all bear female names; one of them, Honorata, became famous for ringing out multiple times to call citizens to rebellion. The bell was damaged during one of the bombardments in the 1714 siege, and King Philip V ordered it to be melted down as punishment for the uprising. 
• More than thirty snails are depicted on the cathedral's façade. Legend has it that during its construction, a plague severely affected the city. Additionally, snails were a crucial food source in the Middle Ages. The most famous of them is the horned snail found on the façade of Carrer del Comte, possibly alluding to the infidelity of an architect's wife.