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Barcelona Curiosities
Barcelona is filled with curious things, some of which can be found in very unexpected places! Here we tell you some that will surprise you!
Inside Santa Maria del Mar
Where would you go to see symbols of FC Barcelona? You would surely go to Camp Nou, rather than a church. However, it is precisely here, in Santa Maria del Mar, one of the most beautiful cathedrals in Barcelona, that you can find the crest of Barça! But why?
Santa María del Mar is one of the most famous places in Barcelona, dating from 1329. The reason why you can find Barça’s crest here is that the cathedral suffered various damages, which is normal considering its age. There was a fire, in the late 60s, after which it was decided to replace the stained glass for new ones. FC Barcelona launched a sponsorship campaign to fund the project.
We will tell you how to find this symbol on our treasure hunt “Born in el Born: The neighborhood stories”.
Around us
Often, while walking around the city, we don’t notice unusual objects and peculiar creatures that inhabit Barcelona. Each one of them has a story to tell.
SUBMARINES
It’s not weird to find submarines while strolling around the streets of Barcelona — in fact, they can be found in different places around the city. They are considered monuments, and some of them even have legends attached, like, for example, the one that can be found in Barceloneta. It is said that Pep Barceló, a fisherman, came from the Atlantic Ocean, aboard of the Ictíneo, a submarine created by Narcis Monturiol, in order to marry Maria la Néta, a fisherwoman, granddaughter of the giant of the city.
By the way, one of these submarines will appear on your way during the treasure hunt Modernist Barcelona.
GIANTS OF BARCELONA
In Catalonia, the Giants are a tradition that has been carried out for a long time. Each neighborhood has its own giants, with its own stories and legends, all of them quite impressive. Two of the most popular and well-known are the city Giants, Jaume I and Violant d’Hongria, and they are also the two oldest ones in Barcelona. The Giants can be seen during ‘las fiestas del barrio’, the neighborhood festivities, when they go out to the streets, dancing and spinning around. However, if you can’t wait that long to see them, they are exhibited inside the Casa dels Entremesos a la Plaza Beates, 2 - and on one of our treasure hunts in el Born! Other ones can be found in a secret place of our route In the Gothic Labyrinths!
DRAGONS
Dragons are very common in Barcelona, and there is a story behind them. The legend of Saint George tells the story of a dragon that scared the city and that was killed by a knight named George, saving the king’s daughter. The legend became very popular in Barcelona and dragons can be found in multiple places around the city. It is said that there are over 400 dragons in Barcelona. The biggest one can be found in Parc de Espanya Industrial. Nevertheless, the most famous is the one that Gaudí created for Park Güell.
We love these creatures too! So you will find lots of them at every our route!
Under your feet
Many things go unnoticed — we even step on them every day. But if you look, you'll see that even the pavement is full of works of art!
PANOT DE BARCELONA
When you walk around the Eixample, you have already noticed Barcelona’s flower tiles. They were designed by Josep Puig i Cadafalch, originally for Casa Amatller, but later they were used to pave many streets of the city. These are the most well-known and became a symbol of the city.
Gaudí designed a hexagonal tile, el panot de Gaudí, initially created to pave the floor of Casa Batlló, but it ended up being used in Casa Milà and in Passeig de Gracia. On the tile, you can see a starfish, algae and an ammonite. Try our modernist route to discover where you can find the Gaudí tile.
LUMINOUS CLOCK IN VIA LAIETANA
Be careful where you step on because if you go down Via Laietana you can end up stepping on a work of art by Juan Cabrerizo, a watchmaker who created a luminous clock on the street floor, which was a curious and beautiful way to tell the time. However, it doesn’t work anymore. This clock dates back to 1935. We will show you the clock on our treasure hunt Lost in Time!
