L’Antic Hospital de la Santa Creu

El Raval is the section of the city located just to the west of Las Ramblas, and the mostly working-class neighborhood sometimes gets a bad rap for being a rough area. Some of this is due to drugs and prostitution, and some is due to fear of the “other,” as El Raval is populated by many immigrant families. However, from tiny, traditional flamenco bars like Robadors 23 to the more modern Filmoteca de Catalunya, the area offers both visitors and residents the opportunity to experience one of the many authentic faces of Barcelona, and to discover a wealth of history if you know where to look. 

One of the historical and architectural jewels of the neighborhood is the Antic Hospital de la Santa Creu, located on Carrer de l’Hospital, 56. It is one of the city's most impressive examples of the Catalan Gothic style of architecture: other examples include the church of Santa Maria del Mar, although in this case the builders’ talents were employed for secular purposes. While the first buildings of the Hospital were constructed in the Middle Ages, the complex formed a part of the city’s main hospital until well into the 20 century. Today, it houses the Biblioteca de Catalunya (the Catalan Library), and other cultural organizations, including an arts school.

History

The Hospital’s construction was started in 1401, with the intent of combining all of Barcelona’s main health-care facilities into one physical site. At the time, the city had six small hospitals scattered around different parts of town; although these institutions had mostly been created by religious orders, they depended on both the local religious and secular authorities for support, and were mostly dependent on private donations in order to survive. Barcelona’s Consell de Cent decided that it would be more efficient to consolidate, and selected the architect Guillem d'Abriell to design what would be the city’s main health-care facilities for the next five centuries. 

The ground floor is based on an open plan with dramatically pitched ceilings; this is where the patients’ wards were located. The two floors above were constructed with lower, cross-vaulted ceilings, and formerly housed the hospital administration offices, the laundry facilities and the kitchen. Various additions and renovations were carried out over the following two hundred years, with care taken to preserve the building’s large open patio surrounded by a Gothic cloister, as well as its vaulted ceilings. A pipe system for delivering drinking water throughout the complex was installed in the 16th century, as were two massive staircases and an imposing door that now makes the Carrer de l’Hospital main entrance to the complex. The inside of the Hospital’s chapel was painted by famed Catalan artist Antoni Vildomat in approximately 1703.

The original building itself only represents part of the hospital complex, which is so vast that it has entrances on both Carrer de l’Hospital and Carrer del Carme. The Casa de Convalescència (the Convalescence Home), located adjacent to the old Hospital, was known for its glass-enclosed solariums. It is characterized by its gorgeous arches on the outer façade as well as its impressive decorative art on the inside, including sculptures by Lluís Bonifaç and Josep Llimona, and an intricate mural in the Casa’s chapel by Catalan Baroque painter Josep Bals. The building next door is also decorated with dazzling artwork on the inside: the Reial Colegí de Cirugía de Barcelona (constructed by architect Ventura Rodríguez from 1760 through 1843), was later replaced by the Faculty of Medicine in 1843, which lasted through 1906, and was where famous Catalan doctors such as Dr. Santiago Ramon i Cajal both studied and practiced. Both of these buildings were added in the 17th century. 

The Antic Hospital de la Sant Creu continued to be Barcelona’s center of medical care, education and research for the next five centuries; the facilities also cared for and educated many of the city’s orphans. But by 1926, the city’s population had grown significantly, and the Hospital could no longer house the number of patients in need of treatment. In fact, one of the Hospital’s last patients was Antoni Gaudí. He was treated for what would ultimately be fatal injuries when he was hit by a tram just outside the Sagrada Familia, in June 1926.

That year, the main medical care facilities were moved into the larger space of the Modernista site l'Hospital de Sant Pau (Carrer de Sant Antoni Maria Claret, 167) which was designed by Catalan architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner, and was constructed between 1901 and 1930.

The Hospital Today

The Biblioteca de Catalunya currently occupies the first floor of the former Hospital complex, the two floors above are home to two public libraries. The Casa de Convalescència is the location of the Institut d’Estudis Catalans (the Institute of Catalan Studies); the Reial Acadèmia de Medicina (the Royal Academy of Medicine) and the Royal Pharmacy Academy is located where the College of Surgeons used to be. The part of the building that used to be the old apothecary still maintains an original Renaissance-style window, protected by an iron grill with an opening at street level that was used to distribute medicines to patients as far back as 1696. The cadaver dissection amphitheater and table in that facility (which is open for viewing by the public) dates back to the 18th century. The structure has also housed the Escola Massana art school since 1931, as well as a small theater.

The Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona requested and obtained permission to use the former Convalescence home in 1969. That part of the former complex is now the headquarters of the UAB Foundation, the Doctor Robert Foundation, the Institute of Sciences of Education and other UAB departments. The University also organizes talks, congresses and other events on-site. 

In the spring, tourists and locals alike gather around the fountain in the Antic Hospital de la Sant Creu patio to observe the annual Corpus Cristi celebration of the “dancing egg,” know as l’ou com balla. There is also a small tapas and cocktail bar in the corner of the gardens of the Antic Hospital de la Santa Creu, appropriately called El Jardí. It is open from May through October, and sometimes offers live acoustic concerts. 

The famed Modernista site that became the second home of the hospital—the Hospital de Sant Pau—has received a number of honors from the national, regional, and local governments since its construction, in recognition of its unique design as well as its important role in local history. It was declared to be site of historic and cultural interest (or “Patrimonio Mundial”) by UNESCO in 1997. It has become a popular tourist attraction thanks to its unique design and its annual holiday lights shows.