Pedralbes, 700 years later: the tomb of the founder and the noblewomen will reveal mysteries of the past

BarcelonaElisenda de Moncada, the third wife of James II the Just (1267-1327), founded the Pedralbes Monastery In 1325, she never took her vows there as a nun: she lived within a monastery that allowed her, once widowed and childless, to maintain her status as a pious queen, as well as the power and influence she had once held. Written documentation exists about the queen and founder of the monastery, but her tomb may reveal much more about her and the noblewomen who accompanied her. The results of the exhumation and study of the queen's tomb, who wished to be buried between the cloister and the church because she did not want to lose either her status as queen or that of a penitent, and of the 14th-century tombs surrounding it, are among the information that will be made public in May to commemorate the 700th anniversary.

"We celebrate that 700 years ago a woman wanted to build a building to live in with other women of her social standing. These were women who had already fulfilled the role that society demanded of them: to be mothers or to marry in order to secure inheritances and lineages," explains Anna Castellano, director of the Pedralbes Monastery. "They wanted to be masters of their own lives, and in the monastery they found a space in which to develop," she adds. Reaching 700 years of existence also demonstrates the exceptional nature of the Pedralbes Monastery, which has survived wars and political conflicts of all kinds. "At the time, Elisenda de Moncada secured the civil and financial support to build the monastery, and over the centuries, the monastery has maintained virtually all of its heritage, making it a rare bird," says Castellano. The religious community also left for seven centuries, but in February of last year, the last three Poor Clare nuns departed Pedralbes. "The religious community has maintained their legacy, and although they are no longer alive, they remain present," says the monastery's director. "Both the activities that will take place throughout the year and the entire scientific project surrounding the tombs aim to raise awareness of the legacy of all these exceptional women," says Castellano. The analysis of the tombs began in October 2024 and will continue throughout 2026. The first results, which may reveal quite surprising and unexpected information, will be released in May. They will provide data on who is in the tombs, but also on life in the monastery. From how they fed From those buried there, to the illnesses they suffered, to issues surrounding women's health, daily life, and the rituals and beliefs that accompanied death behind the walls.

A new look at the funerary monument of Elisenda de Montcada

The funerary monument of Elisenda de Montcada is one of the best-preserved funerary monuments in the country and also holds artistic significance: the tomb is set within an archway defined by Gothic tracery. It is unique in that it also symbolizes the queen's desire to maintain her dual status: covered with a lid upon which rests a recumbent sculpted image of the deceased, depicted as queen on the church side and as a penitent on the cloister side. However, the passage of time spares no one and has altered its polychromy. Therefore, a digital reconstruction of Elisenda's tomb will be created using augmented reality.

The history of the monastery has many more names: Francesca, Violant, Teresa, Maria, Eulària, Carme, Assumpta, Perrete... Throughout the commemoration, the monastery wishes to remember the power wielded by all these women who managed their own estates and exerted their power and influence beyond the monastery walls. Diàlegs de Pedralbes will explore memory, gender, and heritage, but also spirituality in the medieval world. Taking advantage of new immersive technologies, a fresh approach will be taken to the meaning of the murals in the Chapel of Sant Miquel, a rather unique example of Italian painting from the 16th century. three hundred.

The Santes Creus cell will open

Exceptionally, the doors of the Santes Creus cell will be opened. Built at the end of the 15th century and mentioned in the documentationwithdrawal of the abbessIt was Sister Eulària Anzizu's "room of one's own." An exhibition will celebrate the legacy of this poet, historian, musician, and translator. The same cell, during the Civil War, It served as the office of Agustí Duran i Sanpere, the director of Archives of the Generalitat, who coordinated the work of safeguarding the documentary heritage.

In January 2027, another exhibition will explore devotion to the Virgin, the patron saint of the Royal Monastery, through several medieval altarpieces. There will also be special concerts, conducted by Dani Espasa (director of Vísperas de Arnadí), related to the monastery's centenary and medieval music: the hymns to the Virgin, Fondo amoris or a commemoration of the monastery's founding mass.

As part of the Grec Festival this summer, the Pedralbes Monastery will become the setting for a traveling art experience and site-specific which invites the public to explore its spaces through a sensory and introspective lens. Under the guidance of Ángeles Císcar, the exhibition proposes a journey through the orchard, the cloister, the former care facilities, and the refectory, transforming these historic places into stops on a poetic itinerary.