Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
buttresses and octagonal, flat-topped towers are all typically Catalan-Gothic features, while
it's probably all to the good that its later Baroque trappings were destroyed during the Civil
War.Subsequentlong-termrestorationworkhasconcentratedonshowingoffthesimplebare
spaces of the interior, and the stained glass is especially beautiful.
Plaça del Fossar de les Moreres
Tothesouthofthechurchisthemodernbrick-linedsquareknownas
PlacadelFossardeles
Moreres
, which was formally opened in 1989 to mark the spot where, following the defeat
of Barcelona on September 11, 1714, Catalan martyrs fighting for independence against the
king of Spain, Felipe V, were executed. A red steel scimitar with an eternal flame commem-
orates the fallen.
Passeig del Born
Jaume I/Barceloneta
Fronting the church of Santa María del Mar is the fashionable
Passeig del Born
, once the
site of medieval fairs and tournaments (
born
means tournament) and now an avenue lined
with a parade of plane trees shading a host of classy bars, delis and shops. At night the Born
becomesoneofBarcelona'sbiggestbarzones,asspiritedlocalsfrequentthedrinkinghaunts,
from old-style cocktail lounges to thumping music bars. Shoppers and browsers, meanwhile,
scourthenarrow,vaultedmedievalalleysoneithersideofthe
passeig
forboutiquesand
craft
workshops
- carrers Flassaders, Vidreria and Rec in particular are noted for clothes, shoes,
jewellery and design galleries.
El Born Centre Cultural
Pl. Comercial 12, at Pg. del Born • Tues-Sun 10am-8pm • Free access to the centre, €6 exhibitions (includes
audio-guide) • 932 564 190,
elborncentrecultural.cat
• Jaume I/Barceloneta
Thehandsome
AnticMercatdelBorn
(1873-76)wasthebiggestofBarcelona'snineteenth-
century market halls. It was the city's main wholesale fruit and veg market until 1971, and
was then due to be demolished but was saved by local protest. It remained empty for dec-
ades, before finally reopening in 2013 as
ElBornCentreCultural
, where three centuries of
Catalan history - from the siege of 1714 to the present - are remembered inside a renovated
structure of sparkling glass and intricate wrought iron. This transformation from decaying
building to stunning cultural centre proved to be a drawn-out business, partly because ex-
cavations revealed that the market stood directly on top of the remains of eighteenth-century
shops, factories, houses and taverns that predate the Ciutadella fortress and the Barceloneta
district. It's a fascinating discovery that the city has put on full display. From elevated walk-
ways built under the market's soaring domed ceiling, visitors can look down on the painstak-
