El Born

The huge metallic hall in front of you is home to the El Born Centre for Culture and Memory. Once a bustling market, it has now earned the nickname “cathedral of iron and glass”. Today, it hosts a permanent exhibition on Barcelona throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. You can enter for free to see the archaeological remains which were uncovered when the market was converted into a library. In the Middle Ages, this area was the lively Ribera district. But in 1714, during the War of Spanish Succession, and after a 14-month siege, Barcelona fell to Philip V of Spain. The king ordered the construction of a massive military citadel, to ensure control over the Catalans. This required the demolition of over 1,200 houses in the Ribera neighbourhood. Thousands of residents lost their homes and relocated to the Barceloneta area. The citadel was demolished in 1868, and the city commissioned architect Josep Fontserè i Mestre to make something new of the area. He designed this vast covered market, inspired by the many halls appearing across Europe at the time. The market eventually became outdated, but the locals didn’t want it to be demolished. In the 2000s, the city decided to turn it into a library instead. The rest is history. The building was declared a site of national interest and transformed into a cultural centre showcasing the masses of archeological remains and household objects found here. I’ll let you go and explore it for yourself.