Mysteries of Santa Maria del Pi cathedral
Legend has it that an old master asked the devil for help in order to finish the erection of the highest bell tower in Barcelona in the XIV century. The devil agreed and enunciated his term: when the hundredth step of a steep spiral staircase was put, the master would have to leave his soul on it. The master devoted the rest of his life to the construction of Santa Maria del Pi cathedral, but never got to lay the hundredth step in its tower. After the death of the constructor, his successor, free of the dreadful agreement, accomplished the work raising the number of stairs up to 166. The deceived devil left a mark on the unfortunate step in anger; his paw mark was supposed to terrify all the cathedral visitors.
But the effect it produced turned out to be totally opposite. The congregation waited in long lines just to see the “Satan’s footprint”. It interested people much more than the mass, which served as the reason for the priests to erase the mark, now it is impossible to find it.
It is just one of a big number of stories and mysteries revealed to the Santa Maria del Pi guests during night excursions organized by Ad Sentia project, it is the first time in Catalonia when a church opens its doors for night time visits. The excursions are conducted with candlelight and torches given to the visitors at the entrance.
The visits have two different itineraries: “Mysteries of Pi Cathedral” and “Perception tower”. The first itinerary is devoted to medieval art and symbols drawn on the walls of the cathedral. The second itinerary goes up the tower with accompaniment of live music. Both of the excursions finish at the rooftop where the visitors can enjoy beautiful panoramic views of Barcelona at night at the height of 56 metres with a glass of cold sparkling wine.
Santa Maria del Pi cathedral was the highest building in Barcelona from XIV to XIX centuries. All the locals and the majority of tourists know about this church, but its patrimony is still unknown. The project authors call their excursions “a trip to the XIV century”. They are proud that their planned night excursions let the guests see the corners which normally are out of reach for average visitors. The organizers point out that the character of the itineraries is not touristic and the quantity of visitors at a time cannot be more than 20 people. Tickets are available at box offices and online at http://www.adsentiabarcelona.com/.
