Barcelona's 14th Century Gothic Cathedral

This page is about the 13th Century Roman Catholic Barcelona Cathedral in the Gothic Quarter

Barcelona Cathedral History

Historical excavations around Barcelona Cathedral reveal evidence of a religious structure from the forth century Roman period. The roman temple was destroyes by the moors in 985 A.D. Next followed a Romanesque chapel (built 1046 to 1058) and capella de Sant Lucia (built 1257 to 1268). The Capella was integrated into the cloister next to the catedral.

Construction of the current cathedral commenced on 1st May 1298 and was finished in 1460. The main façade is a later addition by architect Josep Oriol Mestres i Esplugas, built between 1887 and 1890 in a gothic style over the top of the original non descript medieval façade. The main tower was the last addition the the current cathedral being finished in 1913.

Barcelona Cathedral has a footprint of 93m by 40m with the central tower having a height of 70m while the two octagonal bell towers are at 50m.

The cloister, which encloses the Well of the Geese Font de les Oques, was completed in 1448. The cloister has 13 Geese, a symbolic number with one goose representing each year of Santa Eulàlia's life before her death.

When walking round the Cloister and the roof, note the gargoyles featuring a wide range of domestic and mythical animals.

The full name of the Barcelona Cathedral is Catedral de la Santa Creu i Santa Eulàlia, Being named after the martyr Santa Eulàlia, patron saint of Barcelona. She was tortured to death in late Roman times after refusing the give up her belief in Jesus. She is buried under the main altar in a sarcophagus in the crypt.

Santa Eulàlia is a local holiday celebrated on 12 of February in Barcelona.

Barcelona Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Barcelona.