The Martorell Museum, in Ciutadella, is expected to reopen its doors in early 2023, just before the next municipal elections, after a comprehensive renovation of the building and within the framework of the 2020-2023 Science Plan. This was announced a few days ago by the Barcelona City Council, which aims to consolidate the scientific vocation of the city's first great park. This was the case from the beginning, during the 1888 Universal Exhibition and subsequently. Numerous elements of the park demonstrate this vocation. For example, the Zoo and the mammoth statue.
The problem is that many of these elements have disappeared, such as the aquarium that was originally at the top of the waterfall and of which only the sign remains. Also, the artificial cave ---attributed to Gaudí--- at the back of the same waterfall that aimed to disseminate what grottoes were like, with their stalagmites and stalactites, and of which some almost unrecognizable fragments still remain in a warehouse used for park maintenance.
Today, the side of the park facing Paseo Picasso is a disgrace, when contemplating the terrible state of five elements that were once part of the scientific pride of Ciutadella. We start at the corner of Paseo Picasso and Pujades. There, one of the buildings by the great modernist Lluís Domènech i Montaner has been closed for years due to works. This is the so-called Castell dels Tres Dragons, conceived as a restaurant for the 1888 Exhibition, Barcelona's first great calling card to the world after the demolition of the walls and expansion through the Eixample. It ended up being a Zoology museum until its closure in 2010, awaiting an uncertain reopening after endless rehabilitation works.
Next, there is the Hivernacle, which is falling apart after being closed in 2005, when the city council did not renew the concession for a restaurant. It was initially designed by Josep Fontseré, but executed by Josep Amargós. Today, the Hivernacle desperately needs rehabilitation. It is desolate to contemplate the empty interior, broken only by the presence of some homeless citizen.
We continue and find the aforementioned Museu Martorell. Designed by Antoni Rovira i Trias, it was inaugurated in 1882 as a natural science museum to house the legacy of Francesc Martorell, who donated his collection to the city. The museum eventually specialized in geology and the zoological collection was moved to the Castell dels Tres Dragons.
Next, another very special space whose closure also prevents enjoying its beauty. This is the Umbracle, a wonderful haven created by Josep Fontseré. Today, its two entrances are shored up and a sign simply says that it is closed sine die for maintenance work. I think I have only once in my life been able to admire its interior and I am depressed by its permanent closure and continuous degradation.
Finally, next to the Umbracle is the so-called scientific corner, designed for the Exhibition and where two unique elements were installed. These are a meteorological column and a distance table. The first was designed by the merchant marine captain Josep Ricart i Giralt. It had a pedagogical purpose to introduce meteorological science among citizens. The column was crowned by a spherical sundial and a weathervane with the coat of arms of Barcelona. On the four faces there was a table of time differences with respect to the main cities of the world and explanations about the subject and instruments used to measure temperature, atmospheric pressure and humidity.
The five elements that were once part of the scientific pride of the Ciutadella are in terrible conditionThe table is a marble slab on which were inscribed the distances separating Barcelona from the great capitals of the planet. Today it's hard to understand the expectation they generated, but in their day it was like a door for the popular classes to the world.The column and the table remain in place, but none of those who admired them in the late 19th century would barely recognize them. The weather vane disappeared years ago from the column, as did the explanatory tables and other elements. Currently, it stands bare and only the celestial sphere survives. No one understands what it represents. The table is so eroded that one has to look very closely to observe the inscriptions that survive. Nor does anyone understand its function.
The announcement of the rehabilitation and reopening of the Museu Martorell must now be welcomed as a door to hope for the recovery of all these historic buildings and elements and for the scientific and knowledge vocation of the Ciutadella to be consolidated. I want to enjoy the geology museum, the Castell dels Tres Dragons, the Hivernacle and the Umbracle again. And I also want to see what the meteorological column and the distance table were like.
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