iMuseu Marítim de BarcelonaEl Raval
A Journey Through Time at the Royal Shipyards of Barcelona
The story of the Drassanes Reials from their 13th-century origins under Peter III to today: the world's largest surviving medieval shipyards.
More in Barcelona
One photo shows workers in 1968 shaping the ribs of a full-size Royal Galley on the Grada Major, the hall where real galleys were built in the 16th century. That replica is still inside the museum.
It is a small, free show: 14 panels of old photographs and engravings from the museum's archive, the Arxiu Nacional de Catalunya and the Arxiu Fotogràfic de Barcelona, with texts by the city chronicler Xavier Theros. Each panel takes one corner of the complex and what it used to be: a cannon foundry from 1745, a military prison, a wine store for the navy and, in 1820, the city's first permanent bullring. You read it in the entrance hall of the building it's about.
It suits anyone curious about the building rather than the boats. Panels are in Catalan, Spanish and English, and no museum ticket is needed. Theros leads free one-hour tours in Catalan on 22 October, 26 November and 17 December at 18:00; places are limited and must be booked.
Look for
Building the Royal Galley, 1968
Look for the workers fitting the frames of the galley replica on the Grada Major; the finished replica is still inside the museum.
Hogenberg's 1563 view of Barcelona
An engraving from the Civitates Orbis Terrarum atlas, from the time when the Gothic shipyard was the first building a traveller could pick out on the skyline.
Fishing boats in the Llotja de Sant Cristòfol, 1960
A display of fishing boats in the boat store that is now the museum café.
Emptying the moat, 1953
Workers dig out the old ditch below the medieval wall, the only intact stretch of Barcelona's 14th-century walls.
The museum's door in 1937
The entrance to what was then called the Museu Marítim de Catalunya, assigned the building in 1936 but unable to open until 1941.
Good for
- An Hour Or Less
- Cheap Culture
- Locals Who've Seen It All
- Nerding Out
Skip if
You want ships and objects: it is 14 panels of photographs and text.
Also at Museu Marítim de Barcelona
On now nearby
Nearby
Image credits
9
- A Journey Through Time at the Royal Shipyards of BarcelonaCourtesy of Museu Marítim de Barcelona
- Barcelona Materials: Local Materials for Regenerative ArchitectureCourtesy of Museu d'Història de Barcelona (MUHBA)
- VisiblesCourtesy of Museu d'Història de Catalunya
- 50 anys dels concerts de la Transició. Barcelona, Palau d'EsportsCourtesy of Museu d'Història de Catalunya
- Museu Marítim de BarcelonaEnric / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Museu d'Història de Barcelona (MUHBA)J Irigoyen / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Museu d'Història de CatalunyaJordiferrer / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Museu Frederic MarèsEnfo / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Moco Museum BarcelonaRolima.moco / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0