The old city of Palma de Mallorca - The neighborhood of the Cathedral

It is a Gothic building of rectangular plan its foundation dates back to the thirteenth century at the time of the creation of the bishopric of Mallorca (1238), whose first owner was Ramón de Torrella. The built between the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, but the original building was greatly expanded in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

The front door to the patio was built in 1473 by master Cristòfol and Joan Vilasclar and Simó Xevari custom Bishop Francesc Ferrer. The main facade of Mannerist style was built in the seventeenth century custom Bishop Majorcan Simó Bauçà in 1616.

Note the door of the old Gothic chapel of St. Paul, dating from the early fifteenth century, which was incorporated into the building of the Episcopal Palace.

Since 2007, the Episcopal Palace houses the Diocesan Museum in part of the building.

Address: Carrer del Mirador, 5

Hours: Monday to Saturday, from 10:00 to 14:00.

Entrance fee: 3 €

Phone: 00 34 971 723 860

The Brotherhood is a charitable institution and care for the poor priests, and was founded in 1470 by the brotherhood of priests of the Cathedral of Mallorca, itself established in 1370 in St-Bernard chapel of the cathedral.

The building of the hospice has its origins in two donations:

• the first donation was made ​​in 1475 by the priest Antoni Llana, recipient of the prebend of the cathedral, who gave his house to build a hospital for poor priests. The hospice began to operate in 1490, with the permission of Pope Innocent VIII, as reported by the inscription on the medallion that is above the main door.
• The second donation was made ​​in the early sixteenth century (1501) by Canon Joan Borras, who gave his house to make the seat of the Fraternity of St. Peter and St. Bernard.

In the second half of the eighteenth century (1775) a new hospice for priests was built by the meetings of the two houses, and under the patronage of the patron saints of the brotherhood, St. Peter and St. Bernard, the Hospital de Sant Pere i Sant Bernat, this hospice is popularly known as Se Hospitalet. This construction is a work of 1775 attributed to the architect Antoni Mesquida Tomas (1732-1812).

The central door is the main entrance, has pillars with a column embedded in the middle and the upper third of the pillars is decorated with foliage. On the entablature above a ledge, there are reasons scrolls framing a niche covered shell, this niche houses a statue of the Virgin Mary. Over the niche, a medallion with an inscription commemorating the founding of the hospital in 1490 (MCCCCXC).

The Museum has a permanent exhibition of some 200 works unique artistic heritage of the Church of Majorca - outside objects of worship - offering a wide panorama of the history of Christianity in Majorca since the fifteenth century to the present day. It mainly home to many Gothic and Mudejar works. The museum is divided into seven sections: religious sculpture, archeology, ceramics (mostly mainland Spain) and other objects of the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries, the legacy Seguier various religious art and numismatics, Gothic painting and literature collection. The contents of the museum comes from convents, monasteries, churches… and donations from private collections.

The first work that we discover is an altarpiece depicting the Passion of Christ (dating from the years 1290 to 1305), from St. Clare Monastery.

On the right, a masterpiece of Francesc Horns "St. James de Compostela (Sant Jaume de Compostela)," known as St. James the Matamoros (Santiago Matamoros), the "butcher of the Moors".

The work of the Valencian painter of the Renaissance Joan de Joanes also holds a special place in the museum.

The oratory gothic Saint Paul, located at the end of one wing of the museum, has a window by Gaudí, which is a test for the windows he made for the cathedral.

You can also see a statue of St. Dominic, dating from the eighteenth century, which is one of the few vestiges of the great Dominican monastery that was at the heart of Palma - the location of the Palace March - which was destroyed in the middle of nineteenth century.

The centerpiece of the exhibition is a remarkable altarpiece of the fifteenth century, the "Saint George" (Sant Jordi) painted around 1468-1470 by Pere Nicard, introducer Mallorca Flemish style. The work is characterized by the wealth of detail: the saint slaying the dragon is depicted with, in the background, the city and the port of Palma as they were in the sixteenth century.

Nearby, another work of Pere Nicard and his master, Rafel Muger representing taking Palma in 1229.

Diocesan Museum of Mallorca (Museu diocesà de Mallorca)

Address: 5 Carrer del Mirador

Hours: Monday to Saturday, from 10:00 to 14:00.

Entry fee: € 3.

Phone: 00 34 971 723 860

Website: www.bisbatdemallorca.com

The museum offers splendid views of the harbor and the bay of Palma.

There is a vegetable garden, surrounded by many Mediterranean plants, a citrus orchard and palm trees, and a populated ornamental pond lilies.

Visit:

The Garden of the Bishop

Address: 6 Carrer de Sant Pere Nolasc

Hours: from 9:00 to 15:00 in winter ; from 9:00 to 13:00 and from 15:00 to 18:00 in summer.

Entry fee: Free admission.