Holding one of the most important medieval art collections in the world, the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya (MNAC) is housed in the majestic Palau Nacional, built in 1929. The highlight is the Romanesque art section, consisting of the painted interiors of Pyrenean churches dating from the 11th and 12th centuries. Other collections include works by Catalan artists from the early 19th century to the present day.
Palau Nacional, Parc de Montjuïc • www.museunacional.cat/en • Open 10am–6pm Tue–Sat (to 8pm May–Sep), 10am–3pm Sun; timings for roof terrace vary, check website. • Adm €12 (valid for 2 days in a month; €14 with audio guide); free on Sat from 3pm and first Sun of the month; free for under-16s & over-65s; roof terrace €2 • Free guided tours first Sun of the month (except Aug; Catalan noon, Spanish 12:15pm), by appointment
The Cambó Bequest, with works by Zurbarán and Goya, and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection, with works from the Gothic to the Rococo, are on the ground floor as are the Romanesque works. On the first floor are the modern art galleries and the photography and numismatics collections.
Commissioned by the city council in 1443, this work by Lluís Dalmau is rich in political symbolism, with the head councillors, saints and martyrs kneeling before an enthroned Virgin.
The well-preserved interior of Santa Maria de Taüll (c.1123) gives an idea of how colourful the Romanesque churches must have been. There are scenes from Jesus’s early life, with John the Baptist and the Wise Men.
Catalan politician Francesc Cambó (1876–1974) left his huge art collection to Catalonia; two large galleries contain works from the 16th to early 19th centuries, including Tiepolo’s 1756 The Minuet.
A small but fine selection from Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza’s vast collection. Among the magnificent paintings are Fra Angelico’s sublime Madonna of Humility (1433–5) and a charmingly domestic Madonna and Child (c.1618) by Rubens.
The interior of Sant Climent de Taüll is a melange of French, Byzantine and Italian influences. The apse is dominated by Christ in Majesty and the symbols of the four Evangelists and the Virgin, with the apostles beneath.
This painting depicts the painter Casas and his friend Romeu, with whom he began the bohemian Barri Gòtic tavern Els Quatre Gats.
Picasso’s extraordinary depiction of his lover Maria-Thérèse Walter shows him moving beyond Cubism and Surrealism into a new personal language, soon to be known simply as the “Picasso style”.
This splendid, mid-12th-century wooden carving depicts Christ on the cross with open eyes and no signs of suffering, as he has defeated death.
Among the fine Modernista furnishings are some exquisite pieces by Antoni Gaudí, including an undulating wooden chair designed to encourage confidences between friends.
The public numismatic collection at the MNAC dates back to the 6th century BC and features medals, coins (including those from the Greek colony of Empuries, which had its own mint from the 5th century BC), early paper money as well as 15th-century Italian bills.