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Casa Batlló UNESCO Art Nouveau Gaudí House

Nicknamed House of bones, One of two modernist art nouveau houses designed by Antoni Gaudí on Passeig de Grácia. Famous for bright coloured tiles

Updated: Mar 6, 2023 by: Barcelona Travel Hacks Views: 2k

About Casa Batlló UNESCO Art Nouveau Gaudí House

Casa Batlló, Barcelona, is one two grand houses designed by Antoni Gaudí on Passeig de Grácia which is barcelona's premier street. (green on the Barcelona Monopoly Board). The other Gaudí house in Passeig de Grácia is La Pedrera/Casa Milá.

The façade of Casa Batlló locally has the nickname casa de ossos, House of Bones, because, from a certain angle, it looks like it has been made from skulls and bones. The skulls are the balconies and the bones are spindle supporting pillars.

Gaudí's theme when designing this house was colours and shapes found in marine life with the colours of the façade taking inspiration from natural coral. At least that is one theory.

Casa Batlló was awarded UNESCO world heritage status in 2005.

Casa Batlló History

Gaudí did not build the house but directed the extensive remodelling of it from 1904 to 1906. He was assisted by Domènec Sugrañes i Gras, José Canaleta Cuadras, Juan de la Cruz Rubió y Bellver and Jaume Bayó.

The house was actually built in 1877 by architect Emilio Sala Cortés and the house was aquired by the textile industrialist Josep Batlló in 1903. Gaudí was commissioned to remodel it.

Casa Batlló is built in the style of Catalan Modernism or Art Nouveau. Typical techniques used are irregular window shapes, curved walls, façade, and ceilings based on shapes seen in nature. Brightly coloured tiles including trencadís pattern (broken colourful tile pieces arranged in a mosaic).

Another common theme is Saint George (Sant Jordi) the patron saint of Catalunya so dragons feature heavily in Gaudí's works. It is said that the turret seen from the front of the building is representative of the lance used by Sant Jordi to kill the dragon. Also the roof represents the dragons back with scales. On the inside of the attic the white arches are said to represent the ribs of the dragon. You can decide for yourself when you visit the roof terrace of casa Batlló as part of the tour.

Visiting Casa Batlló UNESCO Art Nouveau Gaudí House

There is one luxury flat per floor of the building all of which are privately owned except for the second floor which is the Nobel floor and is the main floor of the Casa Batlló museum.

To the rear of casa Batlló, accessed from the main floor is a large patio that Gaudí lavishly decorated with wrought iron railings and trencadís colourful tiling covering the natural curves of the walls.

Noteworthy is the interior atrium and light well that is tiled in shades of blue tiles starting at darkest tiles at the top and transitioning down to lightest blue at the bottom. This is to ensure the light is reflected evenly down the atrium.

The attic was designed as working space for the servants and has large catenary curved arches as well as slats in the roof that allow airflow for drying laundry. These are the ribs of the dragon.

Casa Batlló Tickets

All of Gaudí exhibits in Barcelona are very busy to the point of being oversubscribed and tickets should be bought in advance. Book at least a week in advance, especially in summer to avoid disappointment. Arrive a little before the stated start time of the visit.

Allow about 1 to 2 hours inside the museum and roof terrace to complete the visit.

Summary of Prices

Train/Bus Fare Entry Ticket Additional Information Train/Bus Fare Entry Ticket Additional Information Adult Zone 1 T-casual € 35.00 Students, Over 65 years, 22 Euros Child T-familiar FREE For under 12 yearsGroup/Family Ticket? No.Notes check website for the various types of tickets. Always book online.

Getting to Casa Batlló UNESCO Art Nouveau Gaudí House

Address: Passeig de Grccia 43, Barcelona. 08007

Nearest TMB METRO is Passeig de Grácia on the Green (l3) Yellow (L4), or Purple (l2) lines. The metro interconnects with Renfe Rodalies, AVE and Regional express train lines.

Documents for Casa Batlló UNESCO Art Nouveau Gaudí House

Click on any one of the 2 PDFs to view in full screen and download.

\'Street

Street Map La Exampla Central

Author: Barcelona Travel Hacks

\'Metro

Metro Map La Eixampla Pesseig de Gracia

Author: www.tmb.cat

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