The Palau de l'Abadia offers reception, information and services to visitors at the Tourist Office, located in this emblematic building, as well as spaces and services such as the Abadia Shop and the Abadia Cafe.
One of the most unique spaces in the building is the Sala Tosca, with a semi-vaulted ceiling covered in pumice stone, which starts on a base of Romanesque ashlars. This space houses the coffee shop El Cafè de l'Abadia.
Next to the Monastery of Sant Joan de les Abadesses, one of the jewels of the Catalan Romanesque, an exhibition of scale models allows you to take a tour of some of the most representative monuments of this style in Ripollès. Beyond its great monasteries, the region is rich in genuine Romanesque churches, built at the time when the population of the country was being structured around them.
The models of this space have been built respecting the real proportions of each building and also using the original materials, by Josep M. Anglada from Sant Joan.
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For more information:
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FOR SCHOOLS AND GROUPS - TO LEARN AND KNOW
The Palau de l'Abadia de Sant Joan de les Abadesses has teaching material for primary and secondary school students.
PRIMARY
Didactic unit of the upper primary cycle
SECONDARY
Didactic unit of secondary school
The Palau de l'Abadia is one of the headquarters of Terra de Comtes i Abats, a cultural tourism proposal based on the heritage, history and tradition shared by four towns in Ripollès. In addition to Sant Joan de les Abadesses, the stages of this route pass through Campdevànol, Gombrèn and Ripoll.
More information: www.terradecomtes.cat
Count Arnau is one of the mythical symbols of Catalonia, inextricably linked to Sant Joan de les Abadesses and also focused on other places in the region.
The Interpretation Center wants to provide the keys to understanding the origin and evolution of the figure of Count Arnau from a perspective that encompasses folklore, history, music and literature.
The permanent exhibition, integrated into the "Land of Counts and Abbots" project, is divided into three large sections dedicated, respectively, to the popular song that gives rise to the legend, to its content and its expansion and, finally , to the construction of Count Arnau as a myth, with its corresponding cultural repercussion.
The song: Relive the popular song and dance collected in Ripollès by folklorists of the 19th century. Dialogues between the soul of Count Arnau and his wife that explain why the Count is condemned to roam the mountains of the region on his horse for all eternity.
The legend: Few figures like Count Arnau have as many legends around them, mixing devilish dogs that draw fire from their teeth, impossible loves and eternal damnations.
The myth: The song and legend might have slowly languished until they were lost or remained as a local reminiscence, but from the 19th century, writers and musicians began to recreate this character. Arnau became a legend and came to star in great works such as those by Joan Maragall and Josep M. de Sagarra.
Come and discover it at the Palau de l'Abadia and immerse yourself in all the magic that surrounds the figure of Count Arnau.
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The Palau de l'Abadia de Sant Joan de les Abadesses has teaching material for primary and secondary school students.
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The Palau de l'Abadia, as we see it now, is the result of a long succession of constructions and reforms that began in the 14th century when the abbot Pere de Soler gave shape to the already existing dependencies of the Monastery, where he himself resided It will be another abbot, Arnau de Vilalba, who in the 15th century ennobles the house with Gothic style elements and the construction of the small cloister that connects the different parts of the Palace. The capitals of this cloister are engraved with the abbot's coat of arms, which is also found on the first floor in the lintel of a door.
When the Monastery stopped hosting the Augustinian canons and, finally, the figure of the abbot disappeared, the building entered a period of decline. With the confiscation of Mendizábal in 1835, it became the property of the State and then of the City Council. Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, it had multiple uses: from prison to barracks, school, housing, local organizations and temporary seat of the City Council. Despite the disadvantages that this entails, its continued use keeps it alive in the consciousness of the people of Sant Joan as an essential part of their heritage. Attempts to rehabilitate it go back to the beginning of the 20th century, with the first work promoted by mayor Jaume Bellapart.
In 1933, a large restoration project was presented, by the architect Josep Riera, but the Civil War destroyed it. The restoration resumed in the 80s and, more importantly, during the years 2009 – 2010.
Currently, the completely renovated Palau de l'Abadia houses the Tourist Office, the Center for Interpretation of the Myth of Count Arnau which is part of the Land of Counts and Abbots project, the Abadia Art Space, the permanent exhibition of Romanesque models, a tour of the Ripollès and a set of multipurpose rooms where a wide cultural program is set up, such as conferences, presentations and various exhibitions, the Abat Arnau de Vilalba room is an example.
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La categoria de tot el contingut del Palau de l'Abadia
Espai d'Art l'Abadia
Relació de les exposicions realitzades a l'Espai Art Abadia per ordre temporal d'exhibició a la galeria d'art de Sant Joan de les Abadesses