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dows. The grandest (the oculus maior or 'great eye'), featuring a Star of David,
comprises 1115 panes of glass and shimmers ruby, gold and sapphire. It is the
largest Gothic rose window in the world. Visit in the morning to see the stunning ef-
fect of its coloured light and shapes reflected on the west wall. This spectacle is at
its best at 8.30am on 2 February and 11 November when the image of the main
rose window appears superimposed below that of the other.
The cathedral's three strikingly different apses show the Eucharist in three
stages left to right: institution, celebration and adoration. The left apse displays the
golden wonder of the Corpus Christi altarpiece, an elaborate baroque confection
by Jaume Blanquer (1626-41), devoted to the institution of the Eucharist at the
Last Supper.
Antoni Gaudí carried out renovations from 1904 to 1914. His most important
contribution was the strange baldachin that hovers over the main altar. Topped by a
fanciful sculpture of Christ crucified and flanked by the Virgin Mary and St John, it
looks like the gaping jaw of some oversized prehistoric shark dangling from the
ceiling of an old science museum. Some 35 lamps hang from it and what looks like
a flying carpet is spread above it. The genius of Barcelona Modernisme seems to
have left behind an indecipherable pastiche, but then this was supposed to be a
temporary version. The definitive one was never made.
Not content with this strangeness, the parish commissioned contemporary Mal-
lorquin artist Miquel Barceló (an agnostic) with the remake of the Capella del
Santíssim i Sant Pere , in the right apse. Done in 15 tonnes of ceramics, this dreams-
cape representing the miracle of the loaves and fishes was unveiled in 2007. On the
left, fish and other marine creatures burst from the wall. The opposite side has a
jungle look, with representations of bread and fruit. In between the fish and palm
fronds, and standing above stacks of skulls, appears a luminous body that is sup-
posed to be Christ but is modelled on the short and stocky artist.
Other notable elements of the interior include the giant organ , built in 1798 (free
recitals are held at noon on the first Tuesday of each month), and the two pulpits,
the smaller of which was partly redone by Gaudí.
Palau March MUSEUM
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(Carrer del Palau Reial 18; adult/child €4.50/free; 10am-6.30pm Mon-Fri, to 2pm Sat) This
house, palatial by any definition, was one of several residences of the phenomenally
wealthy March family. Sculptures by 20th-century greats, such as Henry Moore, Auguste
Rodin, Barbara Hepworth and Eduardo Chillida, grace the outdoor terrace. Within lie
many more artistic treasures from some of Spain's big names in art, such as Salvador
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