Plaça d'Espanya (; en, Place of Spain) is one of

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

's most important squares, built on the occasion of the

1929 Barcelona International Exposition The 1929 Barcelona International Exposition (also 1929 Barcelona Universal Exposition, or Expo 1929, officially in Spanish: ''Exposición Internacional de Barcelona 1929'' was the second World Fair to be held in Barcelona, the first one being i ...

, held at the foot of

Montjuïc Montjuïc () is a hill in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Etymology Montjuïc translates to "Jewish Mountain" from medieval Latin and Catalan, and remains of a medieval Jewish cemetery have been found there. Some sources suggest that Montjuïc ...

, in the

Sants-Montjuïc Sants-Montjuïc () is one of the ten districts into which Barcelona has been split since 1984, numbered District 3. Comprising very different areas of the city, it covers the southern part of Barcelona, joining the two former districts ''II'' (mad ...

district.

Features

One of the city's biggest squares, it is the junction of several major thoroughfares:

Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes Gran may refer to: People *Grandmother, affectionately known as "gran" *Gran (name) Places * Gran, the historical German name for Esztergom, a city and the primatial metropolitan see of Hungary * Gran, Norway, a municipality in Innlandet count ...

Avinguda del Paral·lel Avinguda del Paral·lel (; en, Avenue of the Parallel) is one of the main streets of the city of Barcelona, dividing Ciutat Vella, Eixample and Sants-Montjuïc districts. It receives this name because it is (unlike any other street in Barcelona) ...

, Carrer de la Creu Coberta and

Carrer de Tarragona Carrer de Tarragona is a street in Barcelona. A long street lined with high-rises, it serves as the border between Hostafrancs, in the district of Sants-Montjuïc, and Eixample. This street runs from Plaça d'Espanya towards Plaça dels Païso ...

, and leads to the Palau Nacional through Avinguda de la Reina Maria Cristina, which houses one of Catalonia's finest museums, the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC). It was designed by Josep Amargós. The fountain at the centre of the square was designed by

Josep Maria Jujol José María Jujol Gibert (16 September 1879 – 1 May 1949) was a Spanish architect. Jujol's wide field of activity ranged from furniture designs and painting, to architecture. He worked with Antoni Gaudí on many of his most famous works. ...

, a collaborator of

Antoni Gaudí Antoni Gaudí i Cornet (; ; 25 June 1852 – 10 June 1926) was a Catalan architect from Spain known as the greatest exponent of Catalan Modernism. Gaudí's works have a highly individualized, ''sui generis'' style. Most are located in Bar ...

, while Miquel Blay designed the statues. The buildings were designed by Nicolau Maria Rubió i Tudurí. * Venetian Towers - they are 47 m (154 ft) tall and lead the way to the MNAC via Avinguda de la Reina Maria Cristina, an avenue commonly used to host trade fairs. *

Fira de Barcelona Fira de Barcelona is Barcelona’s trade fair institution. Every year, it organises numerous trade shows and congresses. Information of interest It hosts over 150 trade shows, congresses and corporate events per year with 30,000 exhibitors, both ...

*'' Parc de Joan Miró'' - previously known as Parc de l'Escorxador (Abattoir Park), it is nowadays named after the

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

painter

Joan Miró Joan Miró i Ferrà ( , , ; 20 April 1893 – 25 December 1983) was a Catalan painter, sculptor and ceramicist born in Barcelona. A museum dedicated to his work, the Fundació Joan Miró, was established in his native city of Barcelona ...

, whose 22-metre-tall statue '' Dona i Ocell'' (''Woman and Bird'') can be seen in one of its corners. *'' Arenas de Barcelona'', a

bullring A bullring is an arena where bullfighting is performed. Bullrings are often associated with the Iberian Peninsula, but they can also be found through Iberian America and in a few Spanish and Portuguese ex-colonies in Africa. Bullrings are ...

- It was built in 1900 in the Moorish Revival style and has been converted into a shopping center.

History

The square was built on a site that had been previously used for public hangings, until the creation of the now demolished Ciutadella fortress in 1715, where the gallows were moved. It was designed in 1915 and built in 1929 so that it could be ready to host the 1929 Universal Exposition. The square has been in public use since then.

Transport

Plaça d'Espanya is also a major transport hub that serves most parts of the

Metropolitan Area of Barcelona The Barcelona urban area is an urban area in Catalonia (Spain) centered on the city of Barcelona and located less than 100 km south of the border with France. With a population of over 5 million, it is the most populous urban area on the Med ...

Metro

* Espanya ( L1, L3, L8)

Bus

*Line 7 Diagonal Mar - Maria Cristina *Line 9 Pl. Catalunya - Pg. Zona Franca *Line 13 Mercat de St. Antoni - Can Clos *Line 23 Pl. Espanya - Parc Logístic *Line 27 Pl. Espanya - Roquetes *Line 30 Pl. Espanya - Sarrià *Line 34 Sarrià - Virrei Amat *Line 36 Paral·lel - -Can Drago *Line 37 Hospital Cínic - Zona Franca *Line 43 Les Corts - Sant Adrià *Line 46 Pl. Espanya - Aeroport *Line 50 Montjuïc - Trinitat Nova *Line 56 Collblanc - Besòs / Verneda *Line 57 Barcelona (Pg. Marítim) - Cornellà (Estació busos) *Line 61 Poble Sec - Parc de Montjuïc *Line 68 Poble Sec - Parc de Montjuïc *Line 79 Pl. Espanya - Av. Carrilet (M) *Line 80 Barcelona (Pl. Espanya) - Gavà (Av. Joan Carles II) *Line 81 Barcelona (Pl. Espanya) - Gavà (Av. Joan Carles II) *Line 91 Rambles - Bordeta *Line 153 Barcelona - Cornellà *Line 157 Pg. Marítm - Sant Joan Despí *Line 193 Pl. Espanya - C. Montjuïc

Night bus

*Line N0 Pl. Portal de la Pau - Pl. Portal de la Pau *Line N1 Zona Franca (Mercabarna) - Pl. Catalunya - Roquetes (Aiguablava) *Line N2 Hospitalet (Av. Carrilet) - Badalona (Via Augusta) *Line N14 Barcelona (Rda. Universitat) - Castelldefels (Centre Vila) *Line N15 Barcelona (Pl. Portal de la Pau) - Sant Joan Despí (Rbla. Josep Maria Jujol) *Line N16 Barcelona (Rda. Universitat) - Castelldefels (Bellamar) *Line N17 Pl. Catalunya - Aeroport

Train

Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (, "Catalan Government Railways"), or FGC, is a railway company which operates several unconnected lines in Catalonia, Spain. The lines operated include metro and commuter lines in and around the city o ...

Metro del Baix Llobregat *R5/R50 Manresa-Baixador *R6/R60 Igualada *S3 Can Ros *S4 Olesa de Montserrat *S8 Martorell-Enllaç *S9 Quatre Camins *L8 Molí Nou

External links

Barcelona.catFiraBcn.es
{{DEFAULTSORT:Placa d'Espanya, Barcelona Plazas in Barcelona Sants-Montjuïc Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes World's fair architecture in Barcelona 1929 Barcelona International Exposition World's fair sites in Barcelona