The lateen-rigged boat Santa Espina is a historic vessel built in 1928 that has been listed as a Unique Asset of Catalan Cultural Heritage. Now, it will regularly sail the sea again thanks to the cession agreement signed between the Barcelona Maritime Museum (MMB) and the Associació Patí Català i Vela Llatina Calafell.
The agreement was signed on Thursday, July 30, between the museum's general director, Enric Garcia i Domingo, and the president of the Calafell entity, Josep Sierra, at the headquarters of the Destil·leria - Ecomuseu de la Mar de Calafell.
To celebrate the meeting, the event concluded in the best possible way: with a ceremonial voyage where a mixed crew of representatives from both entities sailed the boat again in the waters of Calafell.
A century-old boat with almost a century of history
Santa Espina is a boat that was built in Banyuls de la Marenda by Bonaventura Colomines. It is a sardinal-type boat that was conceived for traditional fishing and sailed under the name Francis until the seventies of the last century. After a period of abandonment on the beach of Sant Cebrià, in 1975 a new owner decided to recover the vessel, restore her and return her to the sea under the definitive name of Santa Espina.
After passing through different hands during the nineties, the vessel was integrated in 2016 into the collections of the Barcelona Maritime Museum. One of its great values is that it preserves its original structures and essence almost intact.
To achieve this, the museum's restoration team has carried out extensive conservation work under very strict conservation criteria, also equipping it with a new engine to ensure safety in current maneuvers while preserving the vessel's historic character.
The Santa Espina was officially declared a Unique Asset of Catalan Heritage in 2009 for its historical, ethnological, and cultural value. Today, it is one of the few surviving examples of an early twentieth-century traditional fishing boat.
Taking maritime heritage back to sea
From now on, the Associació Patí Català i Vela Llatina de Calafell will be responsible for managing the activity of the Santa Espina and making it available to the public. The entity wants to bring Latin sail navigation closer to the public and turn the vessel into an ambassador for the Maritime Museum.
The boat, which has been moored in Segur de Calafell since last year, will become one of the association's flagship projects. The partnership allows the Barcelona Maritime Museum to fulfil one of its core missions: ensuring that its maritime heritage is not confined to museum walls, but continues to sail as a living testimony to Catalonia's seafaring tradition.