Royal Monastery of Santa Maria of Pedralbes
The largest cloister in the world, built for a queen
Founded by Queen Elisenda de Montcada, wife of James II, in 1326, the monastery is one of the finest examples of Catalan Gothic architecture, and its three-story cloister is the most splendid in the city. The complex also includes the Church of Pedralbes, a medicinal plant garden, the tomb of Elisenda de Montcada, and the infirmary — one of the best-preserved Renaissance hospital buildings.
Barcelona Bus Turístic, on the Hola Barcelona app
Your app for visiting the city with the Barcelona Bus Turístic: routes, stops and the most iconic places. A comfortable way to carry your tickets too!
Monastery, church, and convent in a medieval village setting within Barcelona
The Royal Monastery of Santa Maria de Pedralbes is a convent of the Order of the Poor Clares founded by Queen Elisenda de Montcada in 1326. She lived in the monastery from the death of her husband, King James II, until her own. Between the cloister and the church lies her tomb, where the queen is depicted wearing the habit of a Poor Clare nun.
The Pedralbes Monastery Museum complex also includes the Church of Pedralbes, a single-nave structure with seven quadripartite vaults and a heptagonal apse. The last three sections correspond to the choir, which until the 19th century was separated from the rest of the church by a wall that was demolished in 1894.
However, the main feature of the complex is undoubtedly the impressive Gothic cloister — the largest in the world — with three levels: the two lower ones, from the 14th century, form galleries with twenty-six columns on each side made of nummulitic stone (limestone with fossil remains) from Girona, and the upper floor was added later as an attic. Unfortunately, the cloister’s floor slabs are cracked and broken. The damage dates back to Napoleon’s French troops, who during the Peninsular War (1808–1814) turned the monastery into a military barracks and filled the cloister with horses and cannons. In the courtyard, you’ll also find a recreated medieval medicinal garden with around fifty healing plants.
Around the cloister are the monastery’s main rooms: the chapter house (15th century), the abbey, the infirmary (16th century), the refectory, the dormitory, and the day cells — one of which contains magnificent mural paintings by Ferrer Bassa, one of the most important artists of Catalan Gothic, and the first example of Trecento Italian painting on the Iberian Peninsula.
Nuns who made history in Barcelona
The monastery also preserves collections that reflect the daily life of the nuns and the objects the community acquired to beautify the complex: paintings, ceramics, furniture, goldsmithing, liturgical ornaments, textiles, paper, and parchment. Some of the pieces belong to the collection of Sister Eulàlia Anzizu, niece of Gaudí’s patron Eusebi Güell. The nuns lived in the monastery until early 2025
Outside the monastery grounds stands the building known as El Conventet, built in 1329 to house the community of Franciscan friars and renovated in 1919 by Enric Sagnier, who incorporated Romanesque elements from the now-lost Church of Santa Maria de Besalú.
How to get to the Monastery of Pedralbes
To enjoy the impressive cloister of the Monastery of Pedralbes, simply take the Blue Route of the Barcelona Bus Turístic and get off at the Monestir de Pedralbes stop.
For the curious
- Legend has it that King James the Just offered the queen land in Valldaura to build the monastery, but she rejected it because it was too cold. To choose a location, they hung hams to dry in different places and concluded that Pedralbes had the driest climate. Others say they used animal entrails and chose the spot where they took longest to rot — a sign of dry, cool air.
- The Monastery of Pedralbes hosts detailed exhibitions on various aspects of its heritage. Check the current exhibitions before your visit.
