History

What Are the Origins of Lent?

The word “Lent” has Germanic roots referring to the “lengthening” of days, or springtime. But facts about the early origin of the religious observance are not as well known. Read more

What Is La Puríssima, and Why Is It a Holiday in Spain?

December 8 is a national holiday on Spain celebrating La Puríssima. But if you ask just about anyone what it is and why it’s a holiday, you’ll quickly learn that many people aren’t really sure. So, why is it a public holiday? Read more

Contact Tracing: How Physicians Used It 500 Years Ago to Control the Bubonic Plague

Minus the modern technology, contact tracing goes back a long way. Read more

Detail-of-a-miniature-of-witches-being-burnt-and-tortured,-from--Chroniques-de-France-ou-de-St-Denis,-1332-1350-courtesy-of-the-British-Library-v2.jpg

Detail of a miniature of witches being burnt and tortured, from "Chroniques de France ou de St Denis," 1332-1350. Image courtesy of the British Library.

Witchcraft in Catalunya

Witches and wizards, healers and sorcerers: Héctor Cols relates the complicated and tumultuous history of witchcraft in Europe and its persecution in Catalunya. Read more

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Barcelona Present: Restoring and Maintaining

Protecting Barcelona precious urban plan is one of the main issues the city faces today. So to assess Barcelona’s present, we must look to how it is maintaining it’s past. Read more

18th cen Port-de-Barcelona,-gravat-francès-del-segle-xviii.-Desconegut---Josep-L.-Roig-Historia-de-Barcelona,-Ed.-Primera-Plana-S.A.jpg

18th Century French engraving of Barcelona Port published in Historia de Barcelona by Josep L. Roig.

Barcelona Past: The Carta Històrica

In the first of a trilogy on Barcelona’s fascinating urban plan, we take a look at an online tool which lets you view Barna’s history through a series of interactive maps; the insight it gives you into the city’s past is truly remarkable. Read more