Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
structures seen today date back to 1000 BC. The best preserved Talayotic sites are at Ses
Païsses and Capocorb Vell.
Despite ruling over Mallorca for more than two centuries and despite their reputation
as mighty builders, the Romans left behind surprisingly few signposts to their presence.
This dearth of Roman ruins in Mallorca is most likely attributable to the fact that the Ro-
mans, unlike their predecessors, occupied the prime patches of coastal real estate, which
was later built over by subsequent civilisations. The only meaningful extant Roman site
in Mallorca - Pol·lentia, in Alcúdia in the island's north - is also believed to have been
its largest city.
While you can peer into many of Palma's
patis,
architecture buffs will want to be in
Palma during Corpus Christi when many of the otherwise-closed courtyards are opened
to the public. Or hook onto the 'Courtyards and Palaces' walking tour of Palma with Mal-
lorca Rutes.
Muslim Mallorca
Mallorca has remarkably little to show for its three centuries of Muslim rule, not least be-
cause the mosques they built were invariably occupied by conquering Christian armies in
the 13th century, and were subsequently converted into churches. Palma's Catedral and
Església de Sant Miquel are two such examples; no evidence of their original purpose
survives. And mosques were not the only buildings to be appropriated by the new Chris-
tian rulers and transformed beyond recognition - Palau de l'Almudaina was first built by
the Romans, adapted by a succession of Muslim governors before becoming the seat of
royal (Christian) power on the island.
Defensive fortresses on strategically sited hilltops were another feature of the Islamic
occupation, but again most were taken over and much modified by Christian forces in the
centuries that followed. Castell de Capdepera is perhaps the most impressive example.
Mallorcan Gothic
The Catalan slant on the Gothic style, with its broad, low-slung, vaulting church en-
trances and sober adornment, predominated in Catalan-conquered Mallorca. Guillem
Sagrera (c 1380-1456), a Catalan architect and sculptor who had previously worked in
Perpignan (today in France), moved to Mallorca in 1420 to take over the direction of
work on Palma's Catedral, the island's foremost Gothic structure. Sagrera is considered
to be the greatest architect and sculptor of the period in Mallorca. He designed one of the
Catedral's chapels and the Gothic chapter house, and, more importantly, he raised Sa
Llotja, Mallorca's other stand-out Gothic monument.
