Description
Plaça de Catalunya is Barcelona's central square, a vast open space of about 50,000 square meters where the medieval old town meets the 19th-century grid of the Eixample. Four great streets meet here: La Rambla, Passeig de Gràcia, Rambla de Catalunya and Portal de l'Àngel.
In the middle lies a huge compass rose set into the pavement, ringed by fountains and shaded by trees. Around it stand sculptures of the early 20th century, such as Josep Clarà's Goddess and Pablo Gargallo's Shepherd of Peace, and a monument to Francesc Macià.
The square is best known for its fountains, its statues and the flocks of pigeons that gather at the center. It is also the city's great transport hub, with metro, commuter and airport bus stops above and below ground.
Look up at the Telefónica building on one side. In 1991 the artist Brian Clarke designed four stained-glass windows for its tower lantern, to mark the 1992 Olympic Games, so that it glows like a colored beacon.
Of the old cafés where writers and artists met, only Café Zurich survives. Its pianist once included the brother of Queen Fabiola of Belgium.
The square was born when the city walls came down. It was planned in 1859 as part of the Rovira plan, but took shape only in 1902, and got its present look for the 1929 Exposition, together with the metro station beneath it, under the architect Francesc de Paula Nebot.
It has been more than a crossroads. In the May Days of 1937, when factions of the Republican side fought each other in Barcelona's streets, the square was at the heart of the clashes. In May 2011 it filled with the tents of the anti-government protests.
For a long time it hosted theaters and concert halls, none of which survive. Today the square is a place of passage and rest.
In the middle lies a huge compass rose set into the pavement, ringed by fountains and shaded by trees. Around it stand sculptures of the early 20th century, such as Josep Clarà's Goddess and Pablo Gargallo's Shepherd of Peace, and a monument to Francesc Macià.
The square is best known for its fountains, its statues and the flocks of pigeons that gather at the center. It is also the city's great transport hub, with metro, commuter and airport bus stops above and below ground.
Look up at the Telefónica building on one side. In 1991 the artist Brian Clarke designed four stained-glass windows for its tower lantern, to mark the 1992 Olympic Games, so that it glows like a colored beacon.
Of the old cafés where writers and artists met, only Café Zurich survives. Its pianist once included the brother of Queen Fabiola of Belgium.
The square was born when the city walls came down. It was planned in 1859 as part of the Rovira plan, but took shape only in 1902, and got its present look for the 1929 Exposition, together with the metro station beneath it, under the architect Francesc de Paula Nebot.
It has been more than a crossroads. In the May Days of 1937, when factions of the Republican side fought each other in Barcelona's streets, the square was at the heart of the clashes. In May 2011 it filled with the tents of the anti-government protests.
For a long time it hosted theaters and concert halls, none of which survive. Today the square is a place of passage and rest.