The monastery of Lluc in Majorca

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Introduction

General presentation

Plan of the Monastery of Lluc. Click to enlarge the image.

Lluc Monastery. Click to enlarge the image.

The Monastery of Our Lady of Lluc (Monestir de Nostra Senyora de Lluc), founded in the thirteenth century, is the spiritual center of the island of Mallorca and is the largest and most famous of the monasteries of the Balearic Islands. It is a place of pilgrimage par excellence, but it is also a popular place for hikers, attracted by the beauty of its mountain scenery, its rock and wood oaks.

Etymology and toponymy

Lluc comes from the Latin "lucus’ grove where wild Gods reside, suggesting that, in ancient times, a pagan sanctuary was to find this place.

Location

The Monastery of Our Lady of Lluc is slightly elevated in the center of a beautiful valley surrounded by limestone rocks with strange shapes and dense forests, at the foot of the Serra de Tramuntana.

The monastery is located about 35 km northeast of Sóller.

Visits

The Monastery of Our Lady of Lluc (Monestir de Nostra Senyora de Lluc)
The construction of the present sanctuary began in the first half of the thirteenth century, shortly after the reconquest of Mallorca by Jaume I. Newcomers may be the Templars, have wanted to erect in the heart of the island an altar to the Virgin, that they did in the mountains of Lluc. One of the first documents to mention the old chapel of Our Lady of Lluc is the testament of Valenti de Ses Torres, dated 31 October 1268. Another document, dated 1273, reflects the large number of pilgrims who visited the shrine, despite the fact that the road was extremely dangerous.
The humble chapel early became in a short time a center of frequent pilgrimages. The path leading to the sanctuary of Lluc was improved in the fourteenth century, and seven stone monuments dedicated to the Virgin Mary have been erected along the way, each representing one of the Seven Joys of Our Lady. These monuments, carved and painted by Llorenç Tosquella by Pere Merçol, only two now remain, one of which is exhibited in the museum of the monastery. It is the cross of Ca s’Amitger, 1400, is the only of the seven original cross marking the former path Lluc which remained in place.
The Choir of Cornflowers of Lluc
The cult of the Virgin became a popular success, this has necessitated changes in the way the monastery was governed. In 1456, at the request of the Knight Tomas i Tomas, Pope Callistus III transformed the humble Sanctuary Collegiate Church, which became the permanent residence of five priests. In 1526, the Statutes of the School were established by Prior Gabriel Vaquer, these statutes were subsequently approved by Pope Clement VII in the bubble "Pastoralis Officii" of 1531. The most important of these laws was required to celebrate Mass every morning to the Virgin was to be sung by six young singers, together with the priests. The priests also had an obligation to teach grammar, and catechism song to these children. Thus the boys’ choir of Lluc was created. It is known as the "Els Escolanets" or "Els Blauets" because of the blue color of the chasuble they carry. The choir school is the oldest of Mallorca that still exists now, without having been interrupted since the beginning and it is also one of the oldest in Europe, after the choir school of Montserrat which it was inspired from. Since 2006, the choir also accepts girls in its ranks. The singers who are recruited to Lluc receive musical and cultural well-rounded education, religious. The choir school became a religious and cultural symbols of Majorca and has recorded several CDs and has toured outside of the island many times. During the school year, the choir of "the Cornflowers" sings Mass daily, morning (11:15) and night (16:45), except Saturday, in the Basilica of Lluc, in honor of the Virgin.
Country inn of the Porches
One enters the monastery by the square of the Pilgrims (Plaça dels Peregrins), the beautiful gardens and beautiful porches dating from the late sixteenth century, and water Renaissance style that beautifies the square jet. An extension of outbuildings for housing pilgrims proved indeed necessary in 1586 with the construction of a typical inn called "Porches (els Porxets)". Porches served both as a shelter for pilgrims and stables for their animals.

In 1589, a star-shaped fountain was built as a drinking trough for animals. On the square of the Pilgrims held during the summer months, a craft market and the land, with designation of origin.
The Basilica of Lluc
The first church was built in the thirteenth century in the sanctuary of Lluc to house the statue of the Virgin of Lluc (Mare de Déu de Lluc) a shepherd, says the legend, found in the heart of a wood. This figure Marian, the Black Madonna, "La Moreneta", revered by the islanders, is already mentioned in an inventory of 1420. This small Gothic statue is carved out of sandstone and painted. The current basilica, built in the seventeenth century in the Baroque style, was begun in 1622 and completed in 1691 with the completion of the facade.

The altar was consecrated in 1684, but the high altar, with the venerated statue of the Black Madonna, "La Moreneta" in the central niche is the work of master sculptor Jaume Blanquer, conducted in 1629. The statue sits atop the main altar and is visible from the back of the choir. In 1684, the doctor Rafel Busquets has published the "Book of Miracles discovery and wonderful figure of Our Lady of Lluc" which includes the legend of the discovery of the statue, as well as eighty six miracles recorded until 1642.
The plan of the basilica, built by Jaume Blanquer is arranged in the form of a Latin cross with a nave and three chapels on each side, a barrel vault and a dome in the center of the cross. Arches and cornices were carved in local stone. The church is about 28 m long, 6 m wide nave, and 13 m in the greater width. In the early twentieth century, the whole church was decorated in the same baroque style as the choir, following the design of the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. Since then the interior of the church seems to be covered with gold.



In 1707, the church received Lluc from King Charles III of Austria as the Chapel Royal, and in 1962, Pope John XXIII declared minor basilica.
The building of the monastery has been transformed several times, the current building dates from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
In the early nineteenth century, the monuments of the Fifteen Mysteries of the Rosary, each with a bas-relief sculpted by the Catalan sculptor Josep Llimona, were erected on the hill of the "Trobada". The bishop told Jacint Cervera 1881 pastoral processing and administration of the Sanctuary of the Order of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary of Mallorca. In the Magnolia garden is a monument in honor of the founder of the Order, Father Joaquim Rosselló i Ferrá, who did advance the moral and material reform of the old college. In 1910, Bishop Pere Joan Campins, with the approval of the Holy See, has finally granted the administration of the sanctuary to the Order. On August 10, 1884, a crowd of twelve thousand pilgrims gathered on the esplanade of the Shrine, attended the Papal Coronation of the Virgin of Lluc by the Bishop of Mallorca, Jaume Mateu, on behalf of Pope Leo XIII. The "Moreneta" was hailed as Queen of Majorca, with a splendid crown offered to the Virgin by popular subscription pilgrims.
New Country Inn
The construction of modern hostelry and board are due to the impetus and encouragement of Bishop Pere Joan Campins. Its modernist façade, like the interior, surprises with its dimensions. Once the work is completed, an office of dedication was celebrated by Bishop Campins, July 17, 1914.
A statue of the bishop Pere Joan Campins, one of the great patrons of the monastery was erected in 1920 in front of the main door of the church.
Recently, the sanctuary has been designed with several Home Centres for meetings of catechists, youth, et cetera, and Spirituality House recently restored. When the day visitors are gone, the peace and quiet envelope again the monastery, and believers can find in this place of Marian devotion a place of prayer and meditation. Missionaries are available to all those who wish to pray for their help, find God’s peace and promote their spiritual life. There is also a community of Franciscan Sisters that addresses the needs of the pilgrims (00 34 971 517 053).
The Hill of Mysteries (Pujol dels Misteris)
On the side of the road to the hill amount of Mysteries is a collection of sundials dated 1991 (MCMXCI). Top left, a dial indicates the canonical hours of the liturgical day: Matutinum (Matins or Vigils), Laudes (Morning Prayer), Prima (Prime), Tertia (Third), Sixth (Sext), Nona (None) Vesperae (Vespers) and Completae (Compline). Bottom left, a dial Majorcan Babylonian hours indicating how many hours the sun rose. In the center, a sundial of real hours (Temps Vertader). Top right, a sundial in the morning of the Summer and Autumn (Estiu i Tardor) Bottom right, a sundial in the morning of the Winter and Spring (Hivern i Primavera).
The Pilgrimage of Lluc
Every year the first weekend of August, thousands of Majorcan are still a pilgrimage to Lluc to come and pray the "Moreneta". This pilgrimage takes the form of a night march that starts at 22:00 from Plaça Güell in Palma to Lluc Monastery, he was appointed "Sa marxa des Güell a Lluc a peu". There should be between 8 and 10 hours to cover the 48 km. The return can be done by bus.
The monastery of Lluc includes a museum (Museu de Lluc), inaugurated in 1954. The Museum of Lluc, attached to the monastery, has collections of archeology, ethnology (tools and clothes of the inhabitants of the region in the nineteenth century), coins, religious paintings, furniture and liturgical ornaments, ceramics, interesting pieces dating from the prehistoric period talayotic and the treasury of the Virgin. It also exhibits many works of the painter Josep Coll Bardolet, who donated his personal collection of his own works at the monastery. Hours: daily from 10:00 to 13:30 and 14:30-17:30.
The Centre for Study and Interpretation of the Natural Environment of Ca s’Amitger (Centre d’Estudis i d’Interpretació del Medi Natural de Ca s’Amitger / Centro de Estudios y del Medio Natural Interpretación de Ca S’Amitger)
Lluc also hosts a Centre for the Study and Interpretation of the natural environment, housed in an old rural house of the sixteenth century and dedicated to the organization of courses around the theme of nature. It offers a permanent exhibition, with explanatory leaflets and the center of the area. A botanical garden, rich with 200 varieties of plants, is also open to visitors.
The Home (Acolliment)
On the occasion of the Centenary of the Coronation Year, a new complex of services was necessary, which led to the construction on the land of the monastery of the "Acolliment" provisional including recreational areas and that a camping area, surrounded by woods of oaks.
Hiking in the surroundings Lluc
The monastery of Lluc is the starting point for many hikes in the surrounding mountains. For information on the different routes, visit the interpretation center of Ca S’Amitger ("House of the Sharecropper") installed at the entrance of the parking lot. A hiking trail leads from 7:00 to Puig Roig (1 002 m). Another hike from the monastery of Lluc: she travels the mouth of the Torrent de Pareis an impressive parade that leads to Sa Calobra, of unparalleled beauty.

History, geography, arts, traditions, flora…

History
The religious tradition of Lluc probably pre-Roman roots: the monastery was founded in 1250 on a prehistoric site that, if one believes its etymology, must be regarded as a sacred place of oak surroundings.

According to an ancient legend, the statue of the Virgin of Lluc was discovered by a shepherd and a monk on a Saturday afternoon in the rocks on the bank of the river flowing behind the current sacristy. They have immediately brought to the chapel of Sant Pere d’Escorca who was at that time the parish church. The next day, however, when people came to offer their prayers, the statue had disappeared, and was found on the bank of the river. This happened two more times, and a small chapel was built to house the statue where it was originally found.

Practical Information

Visiting hours
Monday to Sunday, 10:00-13:15 and 14:30-17:15. Entry fee: € 4.

Hotels
The Inn du Lluc Monastery
For centuries, the monastery of Lluc has provided the food and shelter to the pilgrims who went there, but more often they are hikers traveling the north of the island using this budget hotel for pilgrims to rest and recuperate in the middle of the Serra de Tramuntana.

Hostellerie du Lluc Monastery. Click to enlarge the image.

The inn has 129 rooms, or "cells," which were nothing fancy, but all have a bathroom and central heating. There are single rooms as well as rooms for 2, 3, 4 or 6 people. Apartments are available in "Els porxets" with two bedrooms, a lounge, a kitchen and a bathroom.

Open all year.

The price of a double room is 36 € per night, without breakfast, 33 € per night if you stay more than 3 nights.

The doors are locked at 23:00 to preserve the tranquility of the place, except for the apartments, which have a separate entrance.

The hotel is in great demand, it is advisable to book in advance:

Phone: 00 34 971 871 525

Email: info@lluc.net

Site on the Web: www.lluc.net

Restaurant

Restaurant Sa Fonda

Sa Fonda restaurant Lluc is the former monks’ refectory: a large room beautifully restored, with a ceiling of wooden beams, large stone arches and Ionic columns of red marble.

The kitchen is a traditional Majorcan cuisine.

Phone: 00 34 971 517 022